Khurshid eyes Iraq oil import boost.

In downtown Baghdad's Al Rasheed hotel, an Iraqi executive was watching an American TV show in which the comedian announced prize for the victor of the Iraq War; the nominees were Iraq, the US and Daniel Day-Lewis. "The prize went to China, which wasn't even nominated, since it's the top buyer of Iraq's oil," said the hotel staff.

For India, Iraq is the second largest supplier of crude oil after Saudi Arabia. Since 2006, the oil imports from Iraq have jumped four-fold to touch $ 20 billion. China's foray has prompted India to take note.

External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid arrived in Baghdad after 23 years, undeterred by the increase in violence here. New Delhi hopes to kick start high-level interaction, with a possible visit by Iraq PM Nouri al-Maliki later this year.

On his way to Iraq Wednesday, when asked if India is a late-starter, Khurshid said, "If we missed a spring or two, it doesn't make a difference; when the flowers bloom, they will bloom with fragrance and in full colour." Khurshid is counting on India's close relations with Iraq before the first Gulf War as he is set to meet the Iraqi leadership on Thursday and make a pitch for increasing oil imports and develop refineries there by getting into upstream facilities.

Iraq is in the process of building five new refineries and has expressed a desire for Indian companies to participate as partners. Baghdad is hopeful of boosting its crude oil production capacity from its existing 3 million bpd to 7 million bpd by 2017.

According to sources, China buys almost half the oil that Iraq produces — nearly 1.5 million barrels a day — and is angling for a bigger share. "The Chinese are the biggest beneficiary of the post-Saddam oil boom in Iraq," an official said.

Source : indianexpress.com