Turkey will start operating the Iraq-Turkey oil pipeline this week - energy minister

The oil pipeline bringing crude from Iraq, which was damaged during the February earthquake, is ready to begin operating, Turkey's Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar said on Monday.

"Within this week, we will start operating the Iraq Turkey pipeline after resuming operations, it will be able to supply half a million barrels, almost, to global oil markets", Bayraktar said during the ADIPEC conference in Abu Dhabi.

Turkey has been a reliable transit route for oil and gas, he added.