Iraq's Oil Plan To Rival Russia And Saudi

Iraq has announced plans to quickly boost its oil production - allowing it to beat the world's current leading oil producers.

A senior Iraqi official said his country decided to ramp up oil production within 18 months by 30%.

The troubled nation, which still struggles for stability more than a decade after a controversial US-led invasion, hopes to pump 4.5 million barrels per day (mbd) by the end of next year, up from around 3.5 mbd now.

It then plans on increasing output by 157% of current rates by 2020, reaching 9 mbd.

Chairman of the prime minister's advisory commission, Thamir Ghadhban, confirmed the seven-year plan.

An output rate of 9 mbd would let Iraq go head-to-head with the three top producers, Saudia Arabia, Russia and the United States.

Mr Ghadhban, a former oil minister, made the announcement at a ceremony in the capital Baghdad to inaugurate a long-term energy plan.

The Integrated National Energy Strategy says Iraq needs to see $620bn (£400bn) invested in its oil and gas and related industries through 2030.

Iraq sits atop the world's fourth largest proven reserves of conventional crude, with about 143.1 billion barrels yet to be unlocked.

Oil revenues make up 95% of the country's budget receipts.

The oil boost news comes from Iraq just as Britain-based BP (LSE: BP.L - news) released revised global gas reserves steeply, dropping Russia's still classified reserves and putting Iran at the top of the world league table.

In its benchmark annual statistical review, BP put global proven gas reserves at 187.3 trillion cubic metres as of the end of 2012, enough for about 56 years worth of global production at current rates.

The new BP estimate was down 10% on its 2011 calculation, with Russia's gas reserves downgraded by 26.2%.

Meanwhile BP estimated global proven oil reserves at 1,669 billion barrels at the end of 2012 - enough to maintain current global production levels for 53 years.

In its report a year earlier, BP had revised global oil reserves sharply higher as new technology made heavy crude grades in Canada and Venezuela economically profitable to extract.

The US, where the energy industry has been transformed by shale oil and gas, oil reserves rose to 35 billion barrels from 31 billion last year, more than 2% of global reserves.

BP upgraded oil reserves for both Iran and Iraq by several billion barrels and kept them at their third and fourth global spots, behind Saudi Arabia.

Venezuela is the leading oil nation, according to BP.

Ecuador, Norway and China were included in upward reserves revisions, while estimates were downgraded for South Sudan, Malaysia, Angola and Gabon.