The United States on Friday backed a new agreement between Iraq and Syria to rehabilitate an oil pipeline that would provide an alternative route for crude exports and reduce reliance on the Strait of Hormuz.

“The United States welcomes the engagement of a U.S.-led international consortium to execute the technical and financial aspects of this project,” the State Department said in a statement. “Upon rehabilitation, this groundbreaking project will have an initial transport capacity of 2 million barrels per day of crude oil.”