Iraq's PM pushes multi-pipeline oil export plan, Kirkuk-Ceyhan line favored

BAGHDAD, Iraq — Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani has directed senior officials at the Oil Ministry to develop an integrated plan that ends Iraq's reliance on a single export route, ordering rapid modernization of existing pipelines, new oil sales contracts with international companies and the expansion of alternative export outlets. An oil-sector source said the ministry's plan is centered on multiple pipelines, with the Kirkuk–Ceyhan line seen as the fastest option and truck transport treated as a temporary measure. Work is also under way on reviving the western corridor toward the Baniyas port in Syria, completing the Basra–Haditha line and extending pipelines into Jordan and on to the Red Sea. Mazhar Mohammed Salih, the prime minister's financial and economic adviser, said crude oil should be viewed not only as a raw export commodity but as a strategic feedstock for higher-value conversion industries and petrochemicals. Oil expert Ali Khalil said dependence on a single port increases both economic and security risks, and that the projects should be carried out with the financing, management and technology support of international companies. The meeting in Baghdad came amid renewed Iraqi efforts to diversify export channels after repeated disruptions along key infrastructure routes. No timeline or contract details were immediately disclosed.