Drop in Iraqi oil exports
Iraqi oil exports have dropped by 17,000 barrels last month mainly due to lower output from the northern oil fields of Kirkuk, an Oil Ministry statement said.
The decrease is not substantial but given the current record oil prices which trade at about $118 a barrel the drop means the loss of more than two million dollars a day.
Production of crude and its shipping from Kirkuk has always been a problem for the ministry as some of the strategic oil wells and pipelines in the north are situated in some of the most restive areas in the country.
But the ministry said output from the southern oil fields of Basra rose despite ferocious fighting in the city.
While average output from Kirkuk has dropped to 320,000 barrels a day from 350,000, Basra production has increased 13,000 barrels to 1.598 million.
Prior to U.S. invasion and occupation of the country, Iraq used to produce more than 2.5 million barrels a day.
Indexed under: Basrah, Basrah "surge", Disputed Areas, Economic disruption, Kirkuk, oil exports