Financial pressures and the downgrading of reserves at the key Taq Taq export field have dealt an enormous blow to the KRG’s crude export plans. New production is set to come online in 2016 but only incremental gains are likely, and will be less than the 150,000 b/d of Kirkuk oil currently denied the region.

The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) realized significant production gains in 2015, from 313,000 b/d to 577,000 b/d, but with geological and political risks taking their toll, anything like a repeat this year is highly unlikely. (CONTINUED - 1665 WORDS)