Water at the plant comes directly from the Abd Abdullah canal, which redirects freshwater from a river before it reaches the Shatt al-Arab, the river formed by the confluence of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers, and Basra’s main water source. The Qarmat Ali plant, five miles south of the Eni plant, is operated by the Rumaila Operating Organisation (ROO), comprised of BP, PetroChina and the South Oil Company of Iraq. ![]() Water buffaloes swim near the Nihran Bin Omar oilfield north of Basra. Analysis of satellite images shows how over the past year a small dam, built by Eni to divert water from the Basra canal to its water treatment plant is preventing the seasonal flooding of the area where Mutir once used to fish.Īnother nearby plant used by oil companies including BP and ExxonMobil accounts for 25% of the daily water consumption in a region of almost 5 million people. The Italian company Mutir is referring to is the oil and gas multinational Eni, which has been working in Iraq since 2009. And as Iraq’s oil exports rise, its water has dramatically fallen. For each barrel of oil, many of which are later exported to Europe, up to three barrels of water are pumped into the ground. To help extract oil, companies pump large quantities of water into the ground. “It is the water station the Italian company built: they need water for their oilfields,” Mutir said, pointing at the black smoke rising from the Zubayr oilfield on the horizon. Now, at the height of the rainy season, Mutir’s boat lies stranded in the mud. ![]() The harvest was meagre but enough to provide food for the family of seven. For years, Mutir and his wife woke at dusk, sailing along a thick network of canals in Al Khora, a few kilometres north of Basra. Mahdi Mutir, 57, worked as a fisher his entire life.
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