Ocean Freight and Heavy Equipment Shipping to Iraq from Houston, Texas
You need to move oil and gas equipment, construction machinery, or pipe from Texas to Iraq. Shipping to Iraq takes careful routing, legalized paperwork, and a forwarder who knows how heavy cargo lands at Umm Qasr. Texas International Freight books ocean capacity from Houston, prepares the export filing, and coordinates delivery to Basra, the oilfields, or the Kurdistan Region. We handle the heavy and oversized freight standard carriers cannot move.
Umm Qasr, Iraq’s Deep-Water Gateway
Most heavy cargo for Iraq arrives through Umm Qasr, the country’s only deep-water port. Umm Qasr sits in the far south, on the Al Faw peninsula near Basra, close to the Kuwait border.
- Cargo – the port handles containers, breakbulk, and project cargo for southern and central Iraq
- Oilfields – Rumaila, one of the largest oilfields in the world, lies about 50 kilometers southwest of Basra City, a short haul from the port
- Onward routes – trucks carry cargo from Umm Qasr to Basra, Baghdad, and inland project sites
Where does your cargo finish its journey? Tell us the final site as well as the port, and we plan the full route.
Oil and Gas Equipment for Southern Iraq
Southern Iraq runs on oil production, and the fields around Basra need a steady flow of drilling equipment, compressors, pipe, and earthmoving machinery. Our oil and gas machinery shipping team moves that cargo out of Houston.
A shipper recently asked us to move a 60,694 lb stainless steel pipe reel, measuring 156 x 100 x 168 inches, from Dayton, Texas to Umm Qasr. A reel that wide and tall cannot fit inside any container. It travels on a flat rack as out-of-gauge cargo or as breakbulk. Our guide on how to ship pipes covers cradles, lashing, and reel handling.
Breakbulk, RoRo, and Flat Rack Options to Iraq
Your equipment size sets the shipping method.
Flat Rack and Out-of-Gauge Containers
Flat racks suit loads too wide or too tall for a standard box, such as reels, skids, and tracked machines. They ride on regular container ships, which gives you more sailing options.
Breakbulk
Heavy lifts and long pieces move as breakbulk cargo, loaded by crane into the hold or on deck. Drilling rig components, large transformers, and process vessels usually go this way.
RoRo for Self-Propelled Machines
A buyer recently asked us to ship a Volvo L180E wheel loader from Texas to Umm Qasr. Self-propelled machines like that can roll on and off when a RoRo sailing fits your schedule. If not, the loader goes on a flat rack. See our wheel loader shipping page for preparation steps.
Documents and Customs Clearance in Iraq
Iraqi Customs needs a commercial invoice and a certificate of origin, both legalized before arrival. The usual chain runs through a local chamber of commerce stamp, state certification, US Department of State authentication, and the Iraqi commercial attaché in Washington, D.C. Iraqi Customs does not accept digital signatures, so documents need wet ink. Your document set covers:
✔ Legalized commercial invoice
✔ Legalized certificate of origin
✔ Packing list
✔ Bill of lading
Iraq’s Central Organization for Standardization and Quality Control (COSQC) also runs a pre-shipment conformity program for regulated goods, and the Kurdistan Region runs its own Certificate of Conformity program. Ask your consignee early if your equipment falls under either one.
Export Paperwork on the US Side
Shipments valued above 2,500 dollars per Schedule B number, or carrying a license requirement, need Electronic Export Information filed in AES before departure. Energy and technology equipment can fall under Bureau of Industry and Security export controls, so we screen the parties before booking.
Northern Iraq and Kurdistan by Way of Turkey
Cargo for Erbil, Duhok, and the north often skips the southern port. A shipper recently booked containers to both Mersin, Turkey and Umm Qasr for the same project. From Mersin, on Turkey’s Mediterranean coast, trucks run east to the Ibrahim Khalil crossing between Silopi in Turkey and Zakho in the Kurdistan Region. Our shipping to Turkey desk handles the ocean leg and the truck handoff.
Working in neighboring markets too? The same team runs shipping to Kuwait and lanes across the wider Middle East.
Cargo Insurance and War Risk Cover
Iraq-bound cargo crosses busy shipping lanes and ends in a region that underwriters watch closely. Standard marine cargo policies may exclude war and strikes risks. Ask for war risk cover as a separate line, and check the policy runs past the port to the final inland site. We arrange cargo insurance sized to your equipment value.
Request Your Iraq Shipping Quote
Ready to ship to Iraq? Send us your dimensions, weight, and delivery point, and we return a routing and a quote.
Phone: +1 877-489-9184
Email: ship@txintlfreight.com
Frequently Asked Questions About Shipping to Iraq
Which port receives heavy equipment in Iraq?
Umm Qasr, near Basra, is Iraq’s only deep-water port. It receives breakbulk, flat rack, and container cargo such as drilling rigs, wheel loaders, and pipe for the southern oilfields.
How do oversized pipe reels ship to Iraq?
A reel too wide or tall for a container, like a 60,694 lb stainless steel reel, ships on a flat rack as out-of-gauge cargo or as breakbulk. The same methods carry oil rig components, compressors, and mining equipment.
Do my documents need legalization for Iraq?
Yes. Iraqi Customs requires a legalized commercial invoice and certificate of origin, with wet signatures. Plan for the chamber, state, State Department, and Iraqi attache steps before your construction or agricultural equipment sails.
Can you ship to Erbil and the Kurdistan Region?
Yes. We ship containers and heavy machinery to Mersin, Turkey and truck them to the Ibrahim Khalil crossing at Zakho. Cranes, generators, and oil and gas skids for northern projects often use this route.
Do I need war risk insurance for cargo to Iraq?
Ask for it. Standard marine cargo policies may exclude war and strikes risks, so add war risk cover for high-value energy sector equipment, transformers, and heavy machinery, and confirm the policy runs to the inland site.
