The pipeline will carry Kirkuk oil to Turkey’s Ceyhan port for export.
Kirkuk’s oil fields came under federal control when Iraqi forces took the disputed areas in mid-October.
Iraq had planned to repair its pipeline to Turkey that had lain unused since it was damaged by militants in 2014, prior to ISIS capturing territory that the pipeline ran through. Oil ministry spokesperson Assem Jihad said on Sunday that the pipeline was too severely damaged to be repaired.
The ministry has therefore begun planning for a new pipeline and is preparing to invite tenders.
The Fishkhabur border crossing is within Kurdistan Region territory. Iraqi and Kurdish forces clashed near the border in October when Iraqi forces and Shiite militias attempted to take control of the key location where the Kurdistan Region meets Turkey and Syria.
A ceasefire is currently in place and military representatives of the two sides are in talks, though no final solution has been reached as of yet.
Kirkuk’s oil was previously being exported via the Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) pipeline to Ceyhan. Oil exports have largely been stalled since federal forces took control of the province. Iran and Iraq have announced an agreement to truck 30,000 to 60,000 barrels of Kirkuk oil per day in a swap deal.
Baghdad would like to increase Kirkuk’s oil production to one million barrels per day.
