Syria on Kirkuk-Baniyas pipeline revival: Not a Priority
Shafaq News/ On Thursday, the SyrianTransitional Government revealed that it has not held talks with Iraq about oilimports or the revival of a long-dormant pipeline.
“There are no negotiations with Iraq or SaudiArabia to import oil,” Ahmed Suleiman, Director of Public Relations at Syria’sMinistry of Oil and Mineral Resources, told the Washington-based EnergyPlatform, adding that Syria procures crude oil through tender announcements tosecure the most reliable supplies.
Suleiman also affirmed that theKirkuk-Baniyas pipeline, which connects Iraq’s Kirkuk oil fields to Syria’sBaniyas port, remains inactive and is not currently a priority for eithergovernment.
Inaugurated in 1952, the 800-kilometerpipeline, which has a capacity of 300,000 barrels per day, requires extensiverehabilitation, particularly on the Syrian side, where the country’s energyinfrastructure has suffered significant damage since the war erupted in 2011.It operated sporadically before being shut down in 2010 after sustaining severedamage from attacks by the Global Coalition in Iraq and Syria.
