Oil Tanker Buildup at Basra Oil Terminal

zoom Dozens of oil tankers are waiting to load at Iraqs offshore deep sea oil terminal Al Basra Oil Terminal in the Persian Gulf. A buildup of over 30 oil tankers has been reported amid delays of up to three weeks to load oil caused by bad weather and possible oil quality issues, Reuters cited shipping sources as saying. Some 22 supertankers and 11 smaller Suezmax ships are said to located near Basra pending to pick up their cargo. The waiting line stretches for about 7,300 meters, or 4.5 miles, end to end, Bloomberg said. Iraq is investing strenuous efforts to boost the countrys oil output so as to compensate for the delays. Based on IEAs data Iraq is set to reach crude production capacity of 4.7 million barrels per day in 2020, 1 million hike compared to last years figures. The logjam is seen by certain analysts as positive as it would lead to avoiding tankers competing for cargoes. However, according to two Singapore ship brokers cited by Reuters, the backlog could push down tanker freight rates as a result of delays in tanker charters. The terminal, situated 30 miles off the Iraqi coast in the Persian Gulf, can host four tankers at a time and pumps more than 1.5 million barrels a day. World Maritime News Staff