The United States has begun importing fuel oil of Iraqi origin shipped through Syria for the first time, according to shipping data and two sources familiar with the operations, as Iraq expands a Mediterranean export route established after disruptions to Gulf trade routes earlier this year.

The alternative route is a further example of shippers seeking ways to move supplies around the world that circumnavigate the Strait of Hormuz, which has been effectively closed for several months, hindering Gulf oil exports as the Iran war rages on.

Three Aframax tankers loaded the fuel oil at Syria's Mediterranean port of Baniyas between June and July for delivery to the U.S. Gulf Coast, according to Kpler shipping data, which sources with direct knowledge of the operations at the Syrian terminal said was of Iraqi origin.

The first tanker, On Passion, departed Baniyas on June 17 with about 716,600 barrels of fuel oil. Around 487,600 barrels were discharged in the Bahamas in mid-July, while the remainder is scheduled to unload in Texas later this month, according to Kpler.

The Nissos Christina loaded about 288,500 barrels at Baniyas and departed by July 8, due to discharge at the U.S. Gulf Coast in early August, while the Green Warrior loaded roughly 414,400 barrels of fuel oil in mid- to late July for arrival in the United States in the third week of August, Kpler data showed.

The cargoes are loaded with Iraqi fuel oil that was trucked across the border into Syria and loaded at Baniyas, the sources said. They are the first fuel oil shipments from Syria ever destined for the United States, according to Kpler.

An engineer at the Baniyas terminal said Syria had not exported crude oil or petroleum products for years, except for a single shipment in September 2025. "All current shipments from Baniyas are limited to Iraqi fuel oil," the engineer said.

Syria's state-owned Syrian Petroleum Company (SPC) did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Baniyas has been loading one tanker of Iraqi fuel oil every seven to 10 days since the new re-exportation route was established in early May, supported by around 900 tanker trucks unloading daily at the terminal, SPC told Reuters in June.

Iraqi fuel oil exported through Baniyas has also been delivered to different customers across the Mediterranean, including Spain and Egypt, LSEG shipping data shows.

Reuters reported last month that Iraq planned to expand the arrangement by exporting crude oil and naphtha through Syria after disruptions to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz prompted Baghdad to seek alternative export routes. Iraqi and Syrian officials said Iraq intended to continue using the Syrian corridor even after traffic through Hormuz normalized as part of a strategy to diversify exports and reduce reliance on a single route.

Although Syria has prepared Baniyas facilities to handle crude oil and naphtha, exports of those products have yet to begin, with re-exports currently limited to fuel oil, the sources said.

The United States had not directly imported Iraqi fuel oil since March, according to Kpler. U.S. fuel oil imports typically come from suppliers including Mexico, Algeria and Iraq, the data showed.

"It looks like a push and a pull: Baniyas has been ramping up fuel oil exports in recent months, while the U.S. Gulf is having to plug the supply gap left by Mideast Gulf flows,” said Matt Smith, director of commodity research at Kpler.

The shipments underscore how regional trade flows have continued to evolve following the disruption to Gulf shipping due to the Iran war, with Iraq increasingly relying on Syria's Mediterranean port to reach customers in Europe, Africa and now, North America.

(Reuters)