The Iraqi crude pipeline to Turkey's Ceyhan oil export hub resumed flows on Tuesday evening and a tanker docked to load Iraqi crude at Ceyhan earlier in the day. Flows had halted on Monday after the earthquakes. (Reporting by Julia Payne and Ahmad Ghaddar in London, additional reporting by Ron Bousso in London and Nailia Bagirova in Baku, writing by Rowena Edwards in London; editing by Louise Heavens)
(Recasts to reflect BP Azerbaijan comment)
By Julia Payne, Ahmad Ghaddar and Nailia Bagirova
LONDON/BAKU, Feb 8 (Reuters) - BP Azerbaijan has
declared force majeure on loadings of Azeri crude from the
Turkish port of Ceyhan, after a series of earthquakes on Monday,
the company said on Wednesday.
The notice was issued to oil shippers following a temporary
suspension of loading operations from the Ceyhan Marine Terminal
(CMT), BP Azerbaijan spokeswoman Tamam Bayatly told Reuters by
email.
BP Azerbaijan operates the Azerbaijan and Georgia sections
of the Baku-Tblisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline.
BP did not immediately respond to a request for
comment.
Azerbaijan uses the Turkish port of Ceyhan as its main crude
export hub, with a flow of about 650,000 barrels per day (bpd).
The BTC terminal at Ceyhan was initially expected to resume
on Feb. 8 or 9, shipping and trading sources told Reuters
earlier in the week, as damage at the terminal was being
assessed. A shipping agent said the control room at the terminal
had been damaged.
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