Syria’s energy minister, Mohammed Al-Bashir, has hinted at plans to visit Iraq to discuss reviving a defunct oil pipeline that previously transported crude from northern Iraq to a Syrian port on the Mediterranean Sea, officials said Monday.

The revival of the old pipeline would benefit both countries by offering Syria a crucial source of crude and providing Iraq with a new export route.

Mohammed Al-Bashir is scheduled to meet with officials in Baghdad to discuss rehabilitating the 850-kilometer pipeline connecting Iraq’s Kirkuk province with the Syrian port of Baniyas. 

Al-Bashir, quoted by Iraq’s Sumeria news agency, said the pipeline's resumption would slash Syria's expensive crude import bill.

Iraq's government has been exploring new export outlets to reduce its dependence on the Hormuz Strait, a key but risky shipping lane for its oil. 

A spokesman for the Iraqi prime minister, Mudhar Saleh, called the Iraq-Syria pipeline a "vital project" that shaped the region's oil industry. "Iraq remains in need to revive plans to expand its oil export outlets," Saleh said.

The original pipeline, which dates back to the 1950s, has a long history of disruptions. It was damaged during the 1956 Suez crisis, shut down between 1982 and 2000 due to political tensions, and sustained heavy damage during the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq. 

Another pipeline connecting Kirkuk to Turkey's Ceyhan port has also been out of service due to political rifts between Baghdad and Ankara.

Iraq, the second-largest crude producer in OPEC, currently produces approximately 4.2 million barrels per day, exporting nearly 3.4 million barrels per day. 

The proposed pipeline would offer a significant alternative for Iraq to market its oil to European clients. However, the plan requires careful negotiations, as Saleh noted that Syria had previously nationalized its portion of the pipeline.

Calls to revive the defunct Iraq-Syria pipeline have been growing following the ouster of former president Bashar Al-Assad to unlock a new export corridor for Iraqi oil. However, political uncertainty in Syria following the fall of the Assad regime delayed prospects for bilateral talks with Iraq.