Illustrative photo.
In Iraq, a delivery date is only as reliable as the weakest step between the supplier and the site gate. Contractors who plan for those steps, rather than for transit time alone, keep their projects on schedule.
Five places a delivery stalls
- Sourcing. Many specialized items, such as API valves, compressor spares and oilfield chemicals, are not stocked in Iraq. They have to be sourced abroad with the right certificates from the start.
- Customs. Import documentation must match the shipment exactly. Errors in descriptions, codes or certificates hold cargo at the border.
- Movement permits. Moving cargo between provinces, and into oil fields or secure sites, needs permits that expire and are issued by different authorities.
- Site access. The truck and the driver must both be cleared for the receiving site, often through a monthly access list.
- Last mile and storage. Heavy or oversized loads need low-beds and cranes. Staged delivery needs secure storage close to site.
Practical answers
Source with documents in mind. Ask for manufacturer and quality certificates when ordering, not when the cargo arrives. Our vendor network covers the UAE, the United States, Europe, the UK, China, India, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, so we can match the source to the specification.
Clear customs locally. A local team that prepares import documentation and deals with the authorities directly resolves queries in hours instead of days.
Plan permits backwards from the need date. Movement permits, area permits and access requests are tracked with expiry dates and renewed before they lapse.
Control the trucks. Own trucks, tankers, low-bed trailers and cranes mean the delivery schedule does not depend on a third-party fleet being free.
Stage close to site. Warehousing in Basra, near the southern oil fields, and in Baghdad allows deliveries to be split and timed to the site's needs.
Fuel: a special case
Fuel supply to generators, vehicles, plant and airfields cannot stop. Contractors need licensed suppliers, quality certificates for every batch, and reconciliation of every litre delivered. Enermax supplies D2 diesel, Jet A and JP-8, in bulk, on a schedule or on call.
Track record
We have provided general procurement and logistics to a U.S. Government prime contractor at BDSC, the U.S. Embassy Baghdad and Union III since 2017. We have also provided supplies and logistics to ExxonMobil at West Qurna-1 (2017 to 2019) and Lukoil at West Qurna-2 (2016 to 2020), and compressor spares to Kuwait Energy at Siba.
Our oilfield logistics and fuel supply pages give more detail.
Planning work in Iraq?
Send us your scope of work or RFQ. We reply with an itemised quotation within one working day.