Shahristani: Iraq will propose new standards for the OPEC quotas in 2011

Oil Minister Hussain al-Shahristani said that Iraq is expected to submit to the partners in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in 2011, his ideas on criteria for new shares when it begins to take shape plans for a major increase in production capacity to production levels, Saudi Arabia.

And excluded Iraq from OPEC quotas since the nineties and that its efforts since the U.S. invasion in 2003 to revive its oil sector which had deteriorated due to years of war and sanctions have not borne much fruit.
He said al-Shahristani told Reuters it was too early to start discussing the Iraqi increase in production in the future as its current production of 2.5 million barrels per day is still below the levels of production a decade ago.

 
He added that Iraq will discuss with the principles of a new OPEC should abide by the organization in determining the ceiling for each Member State of OPEC.

 
He said that Iraq will in 2011, a set of principles to the OPEC. He expressed his belief that the organization will find that the principles are reasonable and acceptable. He said Iraq hopes to be approved by member states.

 
He noted that the maximum limits of production demanded by Iraq will include all the other members of the cartel, not only Iraq will depend on new principles to be submitted by Baghdad.

 
Iraq has begun to sign a series of contracts to develop oil fields with international oil companies could increase capacity to 12 million barrels per day over seven years, which will compete with Saudi Arabia’s biggest oil exporter in the world.

 
Analysts say that it is likely that OPEC is trying to push Iraq to restrict the production, rather than pumping all the additional capacity to the market.