A Bahrain passenger shipping agency is hoping to resume trips to Iraq from as early as September.

Uco Travel will be the only agency in the country to offer this destination to passengers by ship.

Its managing director Ali Al Musalam said he was hoping to provide the service from September, but was finding it difficult to secure insurance cover for the ship and its passengers.

He also needed to convince ship owners that the service from Bahrain would be profitable.

The company had started a passenger shipping service from Bahrain to Iraq in December 1999, but was forced to stop the service in February 2003 because of the US-led invasion of Iraq, said Al Musalam.

At that time, the company had provided a weekly shipping service carrying between 200 and 600 people.

During the pilgrim season, the company laid on three ships a week that would carry up to 800 passengers.

"We want to revive again our voyages from Bahrain to Iraq but we are facing a few complications," Al Musalam told the Gulf Daily News, our sister publication.

"All insurance companies refused to issue insurance for the ship and for people, so we need to make an understanding."

Al Musalam said to make sure the service from Bahrain to Iraq would be profitable, they would also have to draw passengers from the eastern province of Saudi Arabia.

He said the cost of travel to Iraq from Bahrain used to be BD53 ($140) per person, but it would now be at least BD150 ($397) because fuel prices had tripled since 2003.

The cost of insurance was also likely to drive up ticket prices. The company would probably use ships provided by a Dubai company that would offer a service from Dubai to Iraq via Bahrain.

The trip from Bahrain to Iraq is 24 hours, while Bahrain to Dubai is 18 hours.

"We want to start now because there is good security on the Basrah river. Before, there were mines under water but now they have been removed," said Al Musalam.

"Passenger ships are already going from Dubai and ours will be the first in Bahrain.

"Since the security in Iraq is improving, maybe we will be able to start the service within a month."

The move to provide passenger shipping services from Bahrain to Iraq follows an announcement earlier this week that direct flights between the two countries could start next month.

Iraqi Ambassador Ghassan Hussain confirmed at the time that high-level talks were continuing to finalise an air transport agreement.

He said Iraqi Airways has purchased more than 50 new aircrafts from Boeing and Canadian firms, the first of which will be operating next month or September.

Having more aircrafts would open avenues for Iraqi Airways to fly to neighbouring countries, including Bahrain. Flights from Bahrain to Iraq are about an hour and 15 minutes.

Hussain said the service would help thousands of pilgrims who make annual trips to Najaf and Karbala, as well as expat Iraqis planning visits home.

He said so far this year the embassy had granted more than 4,000 visas for Bahrainis and more had been granted visas on arrival.-TradeArabia News Service