Iraq plans to invite international companies to compete in order to build a 300,000 b/d refinery south of the country, the oil minister said Nov. 18, as OPEC's second largest oil producer seeks to wean itself off crude products imports.
The refinery, to be built in Fao in the Basra Governorate, will be offered under the Build Operate Transfer or Build Own Operate Transfer investment model, Ihsan Ismaael said in a statement. A petrochemical facility could be integrated into the refinery at a later stage, he added.
Iraq wants to reach a throughput of around 910,000 b/d by the first quarter of 2022 and is focusing on two main projects, deputy oil minister Hamid al-Zobai told S&P Global Platts Sept. 17.
Iraq wants to add another 70,000 b/d to the Baiji complex by year-end, and 140,000 b/d in two years, boosting the facility's refining capacity to 280,000 b/d to become once again the biggest in the country. The country also expects the 140,000 b/d greenfield Karbala refinery to be up and running by the first quarter of 2022, he added.