Azerbaijan, Baku, April 18 / Trend A.Taghieva /
Iraq plans to begin the gradual privatization of the country's oil refineries to attract investments in the oil sector, Iraqi Deputy Oil Minister Ahmed Al-Shamma said, the Al-Jazeera TV channel reported on Wednesday.
Old oil refineries will also be upgraded, and gradually privatized.
Al-Shamma said Iraq has three major refineries - Bija, Al-Daura and Basra. The total capacity of these refineries is 567,000 barrels per day, as of late December 2011.
According to the project to upgrade refineries, capacities of these refineries until the end of 2012 will be increased to 610,000 barrels per day, and by the middle of next year - up to 750,000 barrels, he said.
Al-Shamma also noted that consumption of liquid fuels, particularly gasoline is increasing in Iraq. So, today, gasoline consumption in the country exceeded 20 million liters per day.
According to BP, Iraq's proven oil reserves as of early 2011 amounted to 115 billion barrels. The country ranks in third after Saudi Arabia and Iran.
Earlier an official representative from the Iraqi Oil Ministry told Trend that the country plans to produce more than 3.42 million barrels of oil per day in 2012. About 2-2.5 million barrels will be exported.
The major oil fields of Iraq are Rumaila, Zubair, Nahr Umr, Majnoon and West Qurna in south of the country. Some 80 per cent of oil produced in the country is exported.
