Iraq's oil exports fell to 2.484 million barrels per
day (bpd) in
May from 2.62 million in April due to a slowdown in Kirkuk oil
shipments after repeated pipeline attacks and maintenance operations in the
south.
Iraq shipped 2.198 million bpd from the southern oil hub of Basra and
286,000 bpd from the northern fields around Kirkuk, including 15,000 barrels
trucked to Jordan.
The May export figure is lower than the initial level of 2.6 million bpd given
by oil minister Abdul
Kareem Luaibi on May 26.
Experts say lower exports show the 2.9 million bpd set in the 2013 federal
budget will be difficult to achieve.
Problems include repeated attacks on the northern pipeline, shipment
stoppages from the Kurdish region and infrastructure bottlenecks in the south.
Iraq aims to double its oil output over the next three years and has a
long-term goal of 12 million bpd. The OPEC member is likely to manage around
half that amount, industry experts say, due to infrastructure and logistical
hurdles.
Yet Iraq, which has the world's fourth-largest oil reserves, is still
expected to be the world's biggest source of new oil supplies over the next few
years.
