Iraq has cut oil production by nearly 1.5 million barrels a day and those cuts could widen to more than 3 million bpd within days as the country runs out of storage and cannot export crude due to the Iran crisis, two Iraqi oil officials told Reuters on Tuesday.
As of Tuesday, Iraq has cut production from the Rumaila oil field by 700,000 bpd, from the West Qurna 2 field by 460,000 bpd and from the Maysan field by 325,000 bpd, the officials, who did not wish to be named, said.
That output cut could grow to over 3 million bpd if oil tankers cannot move freely through the Strait of Hormuz and reach loading ports, they added.
The oil ministry said later in the day that the reduction in its crude oil production, owing to the halt in exports after the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, would not affect operations at its refineries, state media reported.
