Iraq taps China for seawater project to sustain oilfields
Shafaq News – Baghdad
Iraq signed a contract on Monday with China Petroleum Pipeline Engineering (CPP) to build a 950-km pipeline network that will deliver treated seawater to southern oilfields, Oil Minister Hayan Abdul Ghani said.
In a statement, Abdul Ghani explained that the project will launch with a capacity of 5M barrels per day (bpd), supplying fields such as Rumaila, Zubair, West Qurna 1 and 2, and Majnoon, with later extensions to Maysan and Dhi Qar. Capacity could eventually expand to 7–8M bpd.
Abdul Ghani described the plan as strategic, underscoring that seawater injection is vital to maintaining pressure in Iraq’s aging reservoirs. "Channeling seawater for industry would free river and groundwater resources for farming and household use."
The initiative is part of a broader $27B agreement signed with France’s TotalEnergies in 2023 to capture flared gas, expand renewable projects, and boost production at the Ratawi field.
Iraq, OPEC’s second-largest producer, depends on oil for more than 90% of state income. Experts warn that without large-scale water injection, output from its southern fields risks a steep decline, making the new pipeline central to long-term production and fiscal stability.
Read more: Without oil: Iraq's economic future hanging in the balance.
