Washington, July 19 (SANA) Syria is emerging as a regional hub for Iraqi fuel oil exports, with its Mediterranean ports, particularly Baniyas, becoming a key entry point for receiving and re-exporting Iraqi fuel oil to global markets, according to a report by Bloomberg.
Within months, Syria has gone from exporting no fuel oil to accounting for more than a quarter of the Middle East‘s fuel oil exports, a shift reflecting the reshaping of regional energy trade routes in response to geopolitical and security changes, according to the report.
Iraq has begun using Syrian territory as an alternative route for fuel oil shipments, with thousands of trucks transporting supplies from Iraqi territory to the Syrian coast over approximately four days before being re-exported via Mediterranean ports, Bloomberg reported.
According to data from analytics firm Vortexa cited by Bloomberg, Iraqi supplies enabled Syria to export approximately 720,000 tons of fuel oil in June, while market traders estimated that flows entering Syria during the past month exceeded 600,000 tons.
Land corridor bypassing navigation pressures
The shift is linked to changes in regional energy movement, as risks to Gulf shipping routes have prompted the search for safer alternative routes for supplies. Iraq has focused on diversifying its fuel oil export routes, with the Syrian corridor representing a strategic alternative to the Strait of Hormuz by transporting shipments overland to Baniyas and then re-exporting them by sea, according to Bloomberg.
Trucks from Iraq carry approximately 20 tons of fuel oil each, with the journey to the Syrian coast taking several days before reaching storage and handling facilities.
Washington seeks alternatives to traditional energy corridors
The energy route shift is not limited to commercial initiatives but comes within broader efforts to reorganize regional supply routes amid growing international interest in reducing dependence on vital maritime corridors.
US Presidential Envoy to Syria and Iraq Tom Barrack announced Saturday that Washington is coordinating with five countries in the region, including Syria, on a program to transition to alternative routes to the Strait of Hormuz through developing diversified land and maritime transport and supply networks.
Speaking at the US-Iraq Business Summit in Washington, Barrack said the program includes Syria, Jordan, Türkiye, Lebanon and Egypt, aiming to enhance the resilience of transport and energy supply chains at a time when diversifying trade and supply routes has become a key part of regional economic and strategic calculations.
Baniyas returns to regional energy prominence
The shift is not limited to current truck movements but coincides with steps to revive Syria’s oil infrastructure, particularly the historic Kirkuk-Baniyas route.
Syria and Iraq signed memoranda of understanding to rehabilitate the Haditha-Baniyas route, historically linked to the Kirkuk-Baniyas pipeline, with the aim of reaching a transport capacity of approximately two million barrels per day.
The rehabilitation of the route carries not only economic dimensions but could enhance Syria’s role as a regional energy corridor through transit, storage, transport and port services.
Growing international interest in Syria’s energy position
Recent developments indicate growing international interest in reintegrating Syria into regional energy projects. Bloomberg noted that the easing of some economic restrictions has allowed for exploring Syria’s role as a route for Iraqi energy supplies to the Mediterranean. The report also noted that global energy companies have begun viewing Syria’s geographic location as part of future energy routes in the region.
The Strait of Hormuz, through which approximately one-fifth of the world’s oil supply passed before the war, has been largely closed since the US-Israeli war on Iran broke out in February. While shipping gradually increased after the US and Iran signed an agreement in June to end the war, flows have since fallen back after Iran resumed attacks on tankers.
Iraq, OPEC’s second-largest producer and heavily reliant on the strait for its exports, has been among the worst-affected producers, forced to reduce its oil production by 60 percent during the conflict. Before the war, Iraq normally exported about 3.6 million barrels of oil per day, with more than 90 percent shipped via its southern Basra terminals in the Gulf.
On July 16, Syria and Iraq signed agreements in Washington to rehabilitate the Kirkuk-Baniyas pipeline, with a US-led international consortium comprising Chevron, UCC Holding and TI Capital to prepare technical and financial studies. US Energy Secretary Chris Wright attended the signing ceremony, with the State Department describing the project as a “priority infrastructure project of bilateral and regional strategic significance”.
Kh.A / H.H
