Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – A source at the General Company for Ports of Iraq (GCPI) reported on Tuesday that two oil tankers are being loaded with four million barrels of Iraqi crude.
A Greek oil tanker and an Emirati one are being loaded with Iraqi crude at the southern Basra ports as part of the restart of crude oil exports.
According to local news outlet Shafaq News, each vessel has a capacity of two million barrels.
The development comes after the United States and Iran reached an initial understanding on Sunday. The agreement between the two countries resulted in the resumption of maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, which has been closed since the outbreak of the war on February 28.
According to reports, Iraqi oil exports have declined by 2.5 million to three million barrels per day as a result of the prolonged closure of the strait.
Iraq’s crude oil exports fell by 3.22 million barrels per day in May 2026, a loss of more than 97 percent, owing to continuous disruptions in marine traffic in the waterway.
Iraq’s seaborne crude oil shipments declined to an average of 96,000 barrels per day, or three million barrels in May 2026, down from 3.32 million barrels per day, or 103 million barrels in the same month in 2025.
Iraq’s seaborne crude oil export numbers for the first five months of 2026 reveal a drastic change in daily flows, falling to historic levels.
The country’s oil exports reached 3.31 million barrels per day during January, 3.36 million barrels per day in February, 549,000 barrels per day in March, and 132,000 barrels per day in April.
