Iraq moves to restart oil exports as it seeks stability and revenue

Iraq is restarting oil exports, expanding outlets and advancing gas projects to restore revenues, stabilise supply and reshape its upstream sector amid regional disruption.

WHAT: Iraq will resume exports from all fields and launch new sales routes.

WHY: Baghdad wants revenue, stability and stronger domestic fuel and power supplies.

WHAT NEXT: The government must finalise settlements, expand outlets and deliver Bin Umar output.

Iraq is preparing to restart exports from all fields within days, a move intended to restore state income, steady markets and support domestic fuel supply at a time of regional strain. The Ministry of Oil said on April 18 that export operations would resume shortly, while officials also seek to widen sales routes beyond the country’s traditional outlets.

Sahib Bazoun, the ministry’s official spokesperson, told the Iraqi News Agency: “We have contacted tankers and major companies to contract for oil exports, and the door is open to all companies,” adding: “We will resume oil exports within the next few days, and all fields are ready for export.”

He said the ministry was also looking at additional outlets to diversify crude and fuel oil sales, stressing that a faster export process would help “foster stability and generate revenue for the state” while improving supplies of petroleum products, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and dry gas for power stations.

The remarks point to a broader effort by Baghdad to reduce pressure on its oil system after months of disruption across the region. Earlier, the transport ministry said Basra ports had received a very large tanker to load 2mn barrels of Iraqi crude for the first time since the Strait of Hormuz reopened, a signal that export logistics are beginning to normalise.

The scale of the cargo highlights both the system’s renewed flexibility and the urgency of moving volumes quickly while access remains favourable.

Baniyas opens a new route

Iraq has also started using a different outlet for black oil exports through the Syrian port of Baniyas. On April 16, state oil marketer SOMO said it had begun loading Iraqi oil there for shipment to European markets.

Ali Nizar al-Shatari, the company’s general manager, told the Iraqi News Agency: “Today, the first tanker of Iraqi black oil, which was unloaded at the Baniyas refinery in Syria, was loaded onto the tanker in the Mediterranean Sea to find its way to European consumers and European refineries located in that region.”

He said the move was “very important to open a new marketing path that can be invested in the future, as well as being invested now in this crisis,” and added that the company would not stop there.

SOMO “will not stop at this measure, but rather there are efforts being made by the company's employees to maximise and increase Iraqi exports, despite all the logistical, technical and security obstacles that may stand in the way of this achievement,” he said.

For Iraq’s oil industry, the significance lies less in the immediate volume than in the direction of travel. Baghdad is trying to create optionality: more exit points, more flexibility and less dependence on any single corridor. That approach is especially relevant as the state tries to balance export growth with the need to supply gas and fuel oil for domestic power generation.

Lukoil exit advances

The export plans come as the government also works through the implications of Lukoil’s withdrawal from West Qurna-2, one of Iraq’s most important oilfields. On April 2, Prime Minister Mohammed Shiaa al-Sudani chaired a high-level meeting with the finance and oil ministers to review the legal and procedural framework for the final settlement with the Russian group.

According to the prime minister’s office, the meeting resolved key points and established the legal basis needed to move the process forward, with a final recommendation now sent to cabinet.

The government had already approved an amicable settlement with Lukoil in February, opening the way for transfer of operations at West Qurna-2 to state-owned Basra Oil Co. (BOC). The case has been complicated by sanctions pressure. The US Treasury’s General License No. 131D permits certain transactions related to the possible sale of Lukoil International until 1 May 2026, while preserving core restrictions under Executive Order 14024.

Lukoil has separately said it has signed a preliminary agreement with US investment firm Carlyle to sell most of its overseas assets, excluding Kazakhstan. In February, BOC, Lukoil and Chevron also signed a framework agreement that would allow the contract to be transferred to the American company, giving Chevron exclusive negotiation rights for a year under the agreed terms.

That deal coincided with another Chevron arrangement in Iraq, involving state firms Dhi Qar Oil Co. (DQOC) and North Oil Co. (NOC) for the development of the Nasiriyah field, four exploration blocks in Dhi Qar province and the Balad field in Salah al-Din. Together, the transactions suggest that Iraq is trying to keep its upstream sector attractive to international partners even as it reshapes control over major assets.

Policies and domestic supplies

The policy message is straightforward. Iraq wants exports moving, wants cash returning to the treasury and wants its domestic energy system to remain supplied. At the same time, it is widening its marketing routes, renegotiating ownership structures and trying to preserve foreign investment in the sector.

The combination of resumed exports, alternative outlets and the West Qurna-2 settlement suggests a government trying to restore balance in a system that has been pulled by sanctions, conflict and market disruption. Iraq is not merely reopening flows; it is trying to redesign how those flows are controlled and sold.

Iraq is also trying to ease pressure on its domestic energy balance through gas monetisation in Basra. The Ministry of Oil (MoO) said the Bin Umar gas project is expected to produce 500-600 tonnes of LPG, alongside 70mn cubic feet (1.98mn cubic metres) per day of raw gas, around 80mn cubic feet (2.26mcm) per day of dry gas for power plants and more than 1,800 barrels per day of condensates.

Deputy oil minister for gas affairs Ezzat Saber said the project would reduce gas flaring, support the electricity grid and should be operational by the end of April, with completion accelerated through cooperation between the South Gas Co. (SGC), the State Company for Oil Projects (SCOP) and the Basra Gas Co. (BGC).