Baghdad-INA
The Ministry of Oil revealed on Tuesday, a government strategy to maximize national production and enhance Iraq's economic role in global oil markets, while stressing its keenness to increase national production of refining energy.
The spokesman for the Ministry of Oil, Assem Jihad, told the Iraqi News Agency (INA): “The strategy of the government and the ministry depends on the optimal investment of oil and gas wealth,” indicating that “the strategy requires not relying only on the export of oil, but rather diversifying the sources that enhance the Iraqi national income through.. Developing mechanisms for dealing with wealth, which represents the main source of the national economy.”
Jihad added, "The government's strategy aims to maximize national production of petroleum products and the refining industry in Iraq, convert crude oil into white products, and achieve the priority of self-sufficiency, stopping imports, and shifting to exporting these products to global markets," indicating that "the shift to marketing and trade in white products it achieves more revenues from exporting crude oil and contributes to strengthening Iraq’s position in the oil and commercial markets, and strengthens and supports the national economy, which directly depends on this wealth.”
He pointed out that "the Ministry of Oil adopted the strategy announced by the Prime Minister by converting 40% of crude oil into petroleum products, and last year it announced 7 investment opportunities in which it called on private sector companies and national and foreign investing companies to cooperate with the National Investment Authority and develop a promising program companies were invited to establish a number of investment refineries, including the Maysan Refinery Investment Project with a capacity of 150,000 barrels, the Qayyarah Refinery Project in Nineveh Governorate with a capacity of 70,000 barrels, the black oil hydrogenation project in Basra Governorate with a capacity of 30,000
Nasiriyah Refinery Project in Dhi Qar Governorate with capacity. 150 thousand barrels, and the Samawa refinery project in Al-Muthanna Governorate with a capacity of 150 thousand barrels, and also the Al-Kut Refinery project in Wasit Governorate with a capacity of 100 thousand barrels per day, and the rehabilitation of Al-Samoud refineries in Baiji, whose capacity reaches approximately 280 to 300 thousand barrels per day as refining capacities after... Rehabilitation and reconstruction operations, and after the Karbala refinery entered national production and also after the addition of the fourth unit with a capacity of 70 thousand barrels per day in the southern refineries, production became approximately 280 thousand barrels of refining capacity for the southern refineries in addition to other projects, and this will reflect positively on the national production of refining industries that represent the market and demand higher Petroleum Products.”
He stated that "the government and the ministry are working on several axes for wealth, including the axis of internal use to meet local needs and attention to specifications, the axis of exporting crude oil and strengthening Iraq's role in global markets, and the axis of maximizing national production from refining industries and optimal investment of associated or natural gas," indicating that "the government's strategy depends on A contract for integrated project partnerships that include several axes, including integrated projects that include oil extraction and associated gas investment with the establishment of electric power stations, a refinery, petrochemical industries, and others that contribute to enhancing Iraq’s wealth.”
Regarding the Al-Faw refinery, Jihad confirmed that “the Al-Faw refinery and petrochemical industries project is one of the promising projects in the refining industry in Iraq and the first project to be established in the ports of southern Iraq, and the government is working to accelerate its implementation,” explaining that “the refinery includes a petrochemical factory, tanks, export platforms and all related facilities which contributes to achieving an integrated project aimed at investing and exporting these products.”
He explained, "The refinery will enhance the country's refining capacity by 300,000 barrels per day and will include a petrochemical plant, tanks and facilities, and is considered one of the giant projects in the region."