Iraq’s gasoline imports are anticipated to decrease significantly, dropping to 2,000–3,000 cubic meters per day, a sharp decline from over 16,000 cubic meters per day in past years, according to Oil Minister Hayan Abdul Ghani. This reduction in imports aligns with a notable decrease in annual spending on gasoline, gasoil, and kerosene, which has fallen below $1 billion from $5 billion two years prior. The completion of key refinery projects is contributing to this trend. Ghani emphasized the progress of the South Refineries Company (SRC) fluid catalytic cracker project in Basrah, which is expected to eliminate the need for these imports by the year’s end.
Additionally, the Karbala refinery is significantly boosting domestic production, contributing 8,000 to 9,000 cubic meters per day, thereby reducing imports to 4,000-5,000 cubic meters per day. Another project of importance is the upgrade of the Kirkuk refinery, which is set to begin trial production soon, with an anticipated output of at least 1,600 cubic meters of high-quality gasoline. Test runs of the gasoline complex commenced in late May. The upgrade aims to enhance the refinery’s nameplate capacity by 12,000 barrels per day and includes advanced units to improve gasoline quality, making it environmentally friendly to Euro-5 standards.
The Kirkuk refinery comprises four primary units, with three operating at 10,000 barrels per day and one at 16,000 barrels per day, allowing for a total production capacity of 56,000 barrels daily, currently focusing on middle distillates, naphtha, and fuel oil. As of early 2024, Iraq achieved self-sufficiency in gasoil and kerosene and aims to enhance its self-reliance in natural gas, amidst ongoing imports from Iran.