Fire briefly halts crude loading at Iraq's Basra offshore port

Iraqi firefighting boats attempt to put out a fire at the Basra offshore oil export terminal in Basra, Iraq, on July 16, 2019. (Photo by Reuters)

A fire at Iraq's southern Basra offshore oil export terminal briefly halted crude loading operations on Tuesday (July 16) but was put out and loading resumed, Iraqi oil officials said.

The fire occurred in a residential section of the terminal accommodating workers and did not directly damage oil infrastructure, a port official and sources in the Basra Oil Company said.

The fire erupted at around 05:00 am (0200 GMT) and was put out two hours later, according to a port official who was speaking from the Basra port.

Basra port has restored full operations with no stoppage at the oil exports jetties, said a statement from the state-run Basra Oil Company. Four workers suffered minor injuries, it added.

The bulk of Iraq's oil is exported via the southern terminals, which account for more than 95 percent of the OPEC producer's state revenue.

(Source: Reuters)


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