A major Iraqi crude oil pipeline was hit by an explosion today and was on fire, according to witnesses.
The pipeline runs from the major northern Iraqi oilfield of Kirkuk to the Turkish Mediterranean port of Ceyhan. The explosion took place near Fatha, between Kirkuk and the city of Baiji.
Security guards said a roadside bomb had been placed beside the pipeline some 4 kilometres from Fatha, which is 95 kilometres southwest of Kirkuk.
The US-based Congressional Research Service, in an April 2005 report, said the Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline consisted of two parallel pipes.
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One has a nominal capacity of 1.1 million barrels per day but a practical limit of 900,000 bpd, while the other has a capacity of 500,000 bpd.