BAGHDAD, June 14: The main oil pipeline from Iraq to Turkey is expected to be back in working condition within 48 hours after it was hit by fire and explosions caused by a gas leak, a US military spokesman said on Saturday.

We hope the facility will be back up if not today then tomorrow, the spokesman said.

The de facto Oil Minister Thamir Ghadhban, appointed by the US administration in Iraq, said earlier that Thursday’s blasts on the pipeline could hamstring Iraq’s ability to export crude.

The 965 km (600 mile) pipeline from the Kirkuk oilfields to the Turkish Mediterranean port of Ceyhan had a capacity of 1.1 million barrels per day before the US-led war that ousted Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein. It has not yet resumed pumping oil since the US attack on Baghdad.

It will affect export capability. It is a pipeline and any incident in a pipeline would affect exports, but it can be repaired, Ghadhban told Reuters in an interview. He did not give an assessment of the impact of the fire and explosions.

US officials say sabotage to the pipeline is not suspected.

There’s no indication that anything was intentional. It appears for now it was an accident, the US spokesman said.

It’s another example of infrastructure that has gone without any capital investment by the former regime.

Iraq had hoped to restore normal exports in July after it completes sales from storage at the end of this month.

We expect the first shipment (of oil sales) will be around 20th of June from Ceyhan, Ghadhban said, referring to the sales from storage.

Post-war looting and sabotage at oil facilities have delayed the resumption of Iraq’s oil exports and will keep shipments well below pre-war levels for several months.

On Thursday Iraq awarded its first oil tender since the war, for the sale of 10 million barrels of crude held in Ceyhan and the Gulf terminal of Mina al-Bakr.

Turkey’s state-run news agency Anatolian said on Friday its correspondent in Iraq had reported another explosion about 50 km (30 miles) from Thursday’s blast. It gave no explanation for that explosion.

Iraq’s oil exports will be hit by Thursday’s pipeline blasts, US-appointed de facto Oil Minister Thamir Ghadhban said on Saturday.

It will affect export capability. It is a pipeline and any incident inports, but it can be repaired, he told Reuters in an interview.—Reuters