Iraq has secured a major boost with the start-up of a new 900,000 b/d single point mooring (SPM) system offshore Basra taking its southern export capacity to 4.6mn b/d. The timing is propitious, as it enables Baghdad to boost southern exports to mitigate for disruption of northbound shipments to the Turkish Mediterranean port of Ceyhan in the aftermath of the Kurdistan region’s contentious September independence referendum (MEES, 29 September).
Southern exports from Basra province hit a 10 month high in October at 3.346mn b/d, up about 100,000 b/d from September (MEES, 3 November). Southern exports have averaged 3.264mn b/d for the first 10 months of 2017 with output cut from January as part of the Opec agreement. October figures also saw a three-year high for export revenues at $5.455bn. (CONTINUED - 1030 WORDS)
