Iraq's capacity puts pressure on oil prices

The recovery of Iraq’s oil industry is putting downward pressure on global oil prices as the ability of the world market to absorb the extra capacity might be limited, say oil experts.

"Iraq is a wildcard, so it isn't clear how quickly and how deep the affect of its production will be," said Ennio Senese, head of the resources practice for Turkey and Greece, and account lead for oil companies in Italy, at Accenture, at IP Week in London today. "But it could have a big impact on oil prices and urge the need to readdress its current membership of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec)."

"A lot of people have focused on Iraq pumping out huge amounts of