The Undersecretary of the Ministry for Gas Affairs, Mr. Izzat Saber Ismail, inaugurated the second berth for exporting condensates and liquefied gas at Umm Qasr Port in Basra. The Undersecretary said that the berth will provide flexibility in the export operations of liquefied gas and condensates, which currently amount to 50 thousand tons per month, and it is hoped that by the beginning of 2025 it will reach 80 thousand tons per month, noting that with the increase in production rates it will reach 125 thousand tons per month.
The Undersecretary added that the Ministry is implementing a number of strategic projects to invest associated gas in a number of oil fields, noting that gas investment rates will rise to 70 percent by the end of this year.
The opening ceremony was attended by a number of officials in the Ministry, the Southern Gas and Basra Gas companies, and a number of officials in the local government of Basra Governorate. The Director General of the Southern Gas Company, Hamza Abdul Baqi, said that the ministry is implementing a number of promising projects to invest in gas, and thanks to the joint efforts with the Basra Gas Company, surplus rates have been achieved for the local need for consumption of liquefied gas (LPG). This gas is different from the gas that is imported to operate power plants or that is used in petrochemical industries, cement industries, etc.
The Managing Director of the Basra Gas Company, Kazim Port, said that the second berth includes four loading arms, which provide flexibility and increase in export operations for the second berth, explaining, “Two arms with a capacity of 2400 m3 per hour to load butane and propane, and two arms with a capacity of 4800 m3 per hour to load condensates, compared to 500 m3 per hour, the capacity of the third berth from which exports are currently taking place.”