ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraq has formed a team to negotiate a new agreement with Ankara on exporting oil to Turkey's Ceyhan port, an Iraqi oil ministry spokesperson said on Sunday, as the treaty that has governed oil exports between the two countries for decades is set to expire in summer.
“Bilateral meetings have been held between the Iraqi and Turkish sides to reach a joint draft and sign the new agreement, and further meetings are scheduled to take place regarding this matter,” Salim al-Rukabi told Rudaw.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan issued a decree in July 2025 to terminate the Iraq-Turkey Pipeline (TIP) agreement, effectively ending all provisions of the deal signed in 1973.
Erdogan called for a more comprehensive agreement that would include gas, electricity, and petrochemicals in addition to crude oil.
Following Turkey's unilateral decision to terminate the accord, the treaty is set to expire on July 27 this year.
“We will continue to meet, and we will reach an agreement by that date," Rukabi noted.
Turkey's decision was largely driven by a ruling from a Paris-based arbitration court in favor of Iraq, ordering Ankara to pay compensation for violating the 1973 Turkey-Iraq Pipeline agreement by allowing exports of oil produced in the Kurdistan Region without Baghdad's approval.
Following the ruling, Turkey and Iraq adopted a temporary arrangement brokered by the United States that allowed the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to export oil through Iraq's State Oil Marketing Organization (SOMO).
Iraq is seeking to increase its overland and pipeline oil exports as its export capacity through the Strait of Hormuz has been significantly affected by ongoing tensions between the US and Iran.
Washington and Tehran imposed reciprocal restrictions following the outbreak of a nearly six-week conflict that began on February 28 and ended with a ceasefire on April 8.
The conflict pushed Iraq's oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz to historic lows, dropping to 10 million barrels in April through the southern Basra ports, compared with pre-war monthly exports averaging 93 million barrels.
In response, Iraq has sought to expand alternative export routes through pipelines and tanker trucks.
Iraq currently exports approximately 250,000 to 340,000 barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil through the Kurdistan Region's pipeline network to Turkey's port of Ceyhan, in addition to around 200,000 bpd transported by tanker trucks.
The government plans to gradually increase exports through these alternative routes.
Nahro Mohammed contributed to this article.
