NEW YORK, July 11 (UPI) -- The world oil cartel boosted its output last month by 200,000 barrels per day to 29.95 million barrels per day, thanks largely to Iraq.
The Platts report, released Tuesday, found that production from Iraq's northern fields, linked by pipeline with a Turkish port, increased 160,000 barrels per day, or 80 percent of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Nations' June increase.
Strikingly, three OPEC members saw big drops in their daily output during June.
Indonesian production averaged 531,000 barrels under its 1.451 million-barrel quota. Iran claims to be able to pump more than 4 million barrels, although it admits it has had problems selling heavier crudes such as Soroush and Nowruz, but the survey showed Iranian production at 3.79 million barrels in June, 320,000 barrels below Tehran's 4.11 million-barrel quota. Venezuelan production, which has never recovered after the crippling 2-month oil strike of the winter of 2002-03, fell to 2.55 million barrels, which is 673,000 barrels below its quota.
John Kingston, global director of oil at Platts, said, Iraq "now looks like it will be regularly exporting crude from the Mediterranean port of Ceyhan."
