Iraq needs 60 additional oil tankers

Member of the Parliamentary Oil and Gas Committee, Ali Al-Lami, confirmed on Tuesday that the Iraqi Oil Tanker Company (IOTC) needs 60 additional oil tankers to cover the shortage.

Al-Lami told Shafaq News that the parliamentary committee met with the director of the IOTC, Ali Qais, to discuss the most significant challenges and issues pertaining to the company’s operations.

Qais requested support from the Ministry of Oil and the Parliamentary Oil and Gas Committee to obtain some approvals and the necessary financial allocation to purchase new oil tankers, according to Al-Lami.

The Iraqi lawmaker explained that just six oil tankers are now owned by Iraq and that the cost of one may approach $150 million.

Last September, the Iraqi Minister of Oil, Hayan Abdul-Ghani, announced the inauguration of the new oil tanker, Sumer, with a capacity of 200,000 barrels.

During the inauguration ceremony held at the Khor Al Zubair Port in southern Iraq, Abdul-Ghani explained that the IOTC is looking forward to developing its fleet through contracts signed with international companies to build modern tankers with different tonnages.

The IOTC’s director illustrated earlier that the company concluded a contract in 2020 with a Norwegian company to build two oil tankers, each with a capacity of 31,000 tons.