“This is why this project is of such strategic importance to Iraq,” said Jihad.
Some experts question the strategy, arguing that it is not viable because the oil industry infrastructure is in such poor shape after decades of war and international sanctions.
Raad Qasim, an oil engineer, told IWPR that production levels of 12 million barrel per day by 2017 were unrealistic.
“How can a country with damaged oil institutions and a lack of professional staff reach such a production level in such short space of time?” asked Qasim. “And another factor should be taken into account – the widespread corruption in government departments.”
Oil officials said that the terminal inaugurated this week was just part of efforts to address infrastructure constraints.
Uday al-Quraishi, an operations director at the oil ministry, explained that the new project would boost the industry’s overall capacity because it included “pipelines and tanks as well as ports”.
Faruk Mohammed, an oil expert and retired technical manager at the South Oil Company, told IWPR that an increase in oil production, if it was synchronised with the right export facilities, would “definitely enhance Iraq's economy and improve living standards for Iraqi people, who have suffered a lot of injustice in recent years”.
“Such projects will undoubtedly be a step towards the prosperity that all Iraqis dream of,” he said.
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