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Iraq signs oil deal to boost production | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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BAGHDAD (AP) – An Iraqi Oil Ministry official says the country has signed a joint oil project with a British-based company in one of the largest deals since the U.S.-led invasion.

Amman Zouain says the state-run Iraqi Drilling Co. will hold 51 percent of the venture with Mesopotamia Petroleum Co. The deal was signed Thursday and will have an initial capital investment of $90 million.

Zouain says the project will be based in the southern oil fields around Basra and could drill up to 60 wells a year with a potential production of 120,000 barrels per day.

Iraq, which has the world’s third-largest known oil reserves, seeks to increase production to fund development plans.