The Government Energy Committee in Iraq made an emergency plan to face any crisis that might arise if Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz, which could disrupt about 80% of the Iraqi oil exports. The plans include intensifying the exports from the Turkish port of Ceyhan, and also increasing the number of trucks carrying the crude. Iraq has exported about 2 million barrels per day in February 2012, including 1.7 million from the southern port of Al Basra and across the export port in the Gulf, and 75 thousand barrels from its northern fields near Kirkuk to Ceyhan. There are steps to speed up the construction completion of the strategic north pipeline and linking it to Kirkuk pipeline – Ceyhan for exporting oil from Al Basra across the port of Ceyhan.
Iraq is moving forward in building a pipeline extending for 680 km to transport one million barrels per day of the southern fields’ crudes near Al Basra to the main pumping station in Al Hadetha in the west. The establishment of 200 kilometers of the pipeline was finished, and it is expected to be completed in 2013, where there will be flexibility in transferring oil from Al Basra to multiple destinations including Ceyhan.