Iraq's Kurdistan starts oil exports

BAGHDAD, June 1 (Xinhua) -- Iraq's autonomous region of Kurdistan started
Monday its first oil exports through the country's northern national pipelines.

In a ceremony attended by Iraq's President Jalal Talabani and president of
the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) Massud Barzani, the workers at Taq Taq oil
field in Arbil province turned on the pumps announcing the beginning of first
oil exports from the Kurdish region.

The Kurdish region is exporting the oil via Iraqi pipelines that convey the
Iraqi oil from the northern oilfields of Kirkuk to the Turkish Mediterranean
port of Ceyhan.

"It is a historic day. We are proud of this success, and this achievement
will serve the interests of all Iraqis, particularly the Kurds," Barzani said in
the ceremony.

Iraq's KRG has a large degree of self-rule and has a profound disagreement
with Iraq's central government in Baghdad over oil production deals signed by
the KRG.

However, Iraq has approved that the KRG to export crude oil through its
national pipelines to be marketed by Iraq's State Oil Marketing Organization
(SOMO) and the revenue will be deposited to the federal Iraq account.

Earlier, the KRG said that around 60,000 barrels per day (bpd) will be
exported from the Tawke Field in Duhuk province, and that some 40,000 bpd will
be conveyed by tankers from Taq Taq oil field in Arbil province to the northern
national pipelines.

Khalid Salih, a KRG spokesman, said Monday that his regional government
hopes that it would produce 250,000 bpd by mid-2010 and up to 1 million bpd
within the next two or three years.