Shafaq News/ Iraq ranked fifth among Arab countries exporting naphtha during the first nine months of 2024, according to data from the Energy Research Unit, based in Washington.

The data showed that "average naphtha exports from Arab countries rose to 1.59 million barrels per day (bpd) from January to the end of September 2024, up from 1.41 million barrels bpd during the same period in 2023."

Iraq recorded a significant increase in average naphtha exports during the first nine months of 2024, reaching 179,000 bpd—up from 79,660 bpd in the same period of 2023—placing it fifth among the largest Arab naphtha-exporting countries.

The data further indicated that “Iraq's average naphtha exports increased to 175,620 bpd in the first quarter of 2024, up from 76,150 bpd in the same quarter last year,” affirming that "exports continued to rise in the second quarter of 2024, reaching an average of 214,400 bpd, compared to 69,740 bpd during the same period in 2023, before reaching 146,700 bpd in the third quarter.”

The UAE led the list of the largest Arab naphtha exporters and ranked first globally in the first nine months of 2024, followed by Qatar, Kuwait, and Algeria.

Notably, fuel oils have been Iraq's largest export product, with other shipments including naphtha, bitumen/asphalt, gasoil, and gasoline.

Naphtha, an intermediate petroleum product derived from oil refineries, comes in two types: light naphtha and heavy naphtha. It is mainly used to produce gasoline for vehicles and in the chemical industry for manufacturing ethylene and propylene, which are essential for producing plastics like polyethylene and polypropylene.