"A Japanese company in southern Iraq has begun the full-scale production of crude oil.
Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki and other officials attended a ceremony on Saturday at the Garraf oil field to mark the occasion.
Japan Petroleum Exploration Company, or JAPEX, began production on August 31st. It jointly developed the field with a Malaysian firm.
Maliki said in a speech that the 2 companies in partnership with Iraq will increase oil production in Iraq and help lead the country to prosperity.
Garraf is a mid-sized oil field with an estimated reserve of 1.3 billion barrels.
JAPEX plans to produce about 35,000 barrels a day. Daily output is expected to reach 230,000 barrels in 2017. That's more than 5 percent of Japan's total imports.
Oil exports to Japan could start as early as next year.
Japanese firms were involved in crude-oil development in Iraq in the 1970s. But this is the first time a company has been involved there in full-scale production.
JAPEX president Osamu Watanabe said the company was able to begin production much earlier than other oil firms. He said the donation of a soccer field to the local community and dialogue efforts contributed to security.
The minister at the Japanese embassy in Iraq, Kansuke Nagaoka, said a Japanese firm is fully operating in Iraq for the first time since the Iraq War. He said he hopes others can follow suit".
Source: NewsOnJapan
