Iraq plans to increase crude oil export capacity at Gulf ports to 3.45 million barrels per day (bpd) from 3.3 million bpd. However, Iraq has seen delays in recent weeks in completing tenders to upgrade pumping stations at export terminals and in obtaining the approvals needed for the project, a spokesman for Iraq’s oil industry told Reuters. The delay in boosting export capacity by 150,000 bpd comes as the world faces tight natural oil supplies despite volatile oil market sentiment. In June, Iraq’s oil exports averaged 3.37 million bpd, according to Iraq’s oil ministry cited by Xinhua. Delays in upgrading the pumping station mean Iraq’s Basra State Oil Company (BOC) will not be able to increase exports to 3.45 million bpd in the coming weeks. “I am not sure if the BOC can meet this deadline because of the delay [pumping stations] project,” the Iraqi oil source told Reuters. Without the upgrade, Iraqi crude oil exports would remain at about 3.3 million bpd, the source said. In terms of output, Iraq was 75,000 bpd below the June target, secondary OPEC sources said in the Monthly Oil Market Report (MOMR) published on Tuesday. The ten OPEC producers bound by the OPEC+ pact pumped 24.8 million bpd of crude oil in June, which was 1 million bpd below target levels. While the 150,000 bpd boost to Iraqi production capacity is relatively small, any curbs on crude supply could further tighten the global oil market later this year when the EU embargo on seaborne imports of Russian crude and refined products comes into effect. By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com More top reads from Oilprice.com:
