ISIS seizes key Iraq refinery

[whell]

Meanwhile, experts are revising down their forecasts for Iraqi oil production , amid fears the upsurge in violence will snuff out a revival of the country’s war-battered oil industry.

Baiji is one of the most important economic assets in the region and would be a key prize for Isis as it consolidates control of the territory seized in its lightning-fast campaign of the past two weeks.

With the fifth-largest proven oil reserves in the world, Iraq is a linchpin of global oil supplies. Its oil production hit 3.2m b/d last year, more than double the level it stood at during the US invasion of Iraq in 2003.

But there are grave concerns that the chaos in the country’s north could disrupt the country’s oil industry and potentially endanger Iraq’s 2.5m b/d of oil exports.


http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/41a98...#axzz34zTsqh1R

Maintaining stability in the Middle East is a key strategic issue not only for the US but for the rest of the world. If this continues, we'll certainly find out what "its all about the oil" really means.