The Oil Drum | DrumBeat: June 26, 2006

188 comments on DrumBeat: June 26, 2006

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bradshaw on June 26, 2006 - 9:27am

Iraqi Minister Says Oil Production Increased

Iraq's new oil minister says the country's oil production has reached two-and-a-half million barrels a day.

Speaking Sunday on the U.S. Cable News Network, Oil Minister Hussein Shahristani said Iraq expects its daily oil production to reach nearly three million barrels a day by the end of this year and about four million barrels a day by the year 2010.

How long can they keep production at those levels? Or is 4 MB/Day even possible?

In Forbes:

Oil steady as increase in Iraqi output offsets supply risks elsewhere

Oil Minister Hussein Shahristani said Iraq hoped to be producing 4.3 mln barrels by 2010 and to be challenging Saudi Arabia as the world's largest producer by 2015.

Challenging Saudi Arabia as the worlds largest producter by 2015?

Interesting.

-C.

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veganmaster on June 26, 2006 - 9:33am

It seems to me that any statements about future oil production by a government official should be cut in half to get a more realistic figure. I'm only kidding - cut it by 1/3 ;)

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Darwinian on June 26, 2006 - 10:22am

I was just wondering if the former Bagdad Bob and Hussein Shahristani might be one and the same person. Probably not, I think Bagdad Bob had more credability.

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Prodigal Son on June 26, 2006 - 12:02pm

Interesting indeed. A 'democratic', pliant client state is what this whole Iraq adventure was about.

The insurgency, however, isn't going away. And oil pipelines are vulnerable.

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louGrinzo on June 26, 2006 - 1:32pm

Don't forget the neighborhood. Not only does Iraq have a lot of oil and natural gas, but those permanent bases the US is building there will be ever so handy thanks to their proximity to the Caspian Sea fields.

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Dave Cohen on June 26, 2006 - 1:56pm

This is picture worthy.

2.5/mbd - oh yeah!

I'm looking for a little independent confirmation aside from, say, Dick Cheney.

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tate423 on June 26, 2006 - 3:58pm

Anyone else see this?

http://www.worldtribune.com/worldtribune/06/front2453913.078472222.html

Iran plans to ration gasoline.
Officials said Iran, hampered by a shortfall in funding, would halt the import of 200,000 barrels per day of gasoline on Sept. 23, 2006. They said no decision has been made on when to begin gasoline rationing.
Despite its status as the fourth largest oil producer in the world, Iran lacks refining capacity to meet the nation's fuel needs.
The announcement to end gasoline imports -- most of it from Western Europe -- stemmed from a decision by parliament to reduce the budget for gasoline imports to $2.5 billion from $4 billion, Middle East Newsline reported.
A key parliamentarian has already dismissed the prospect of rationing in the near term.
"Next week will be time to decide when we start rationing," Iranian Oil Minister Kazem Vaziri-Hamaneh said on June 23.
"Because there is no budget for importing gasoline in the second half of the year, naturally imports will be stopped and gasoline will be supplied by rationing."

So are we peaking or what?

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Twilight on June 26, 2006 - 5:30pm

I believe it was posted, and that it was suggested that the Iranians are trying to remove a vulerability that the US has discussed trying to exploit. IMHO this sounds correct.

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