Iraq oil exports down in January: ministry

Iraq's oil exports fell in January compared to the month before due to bad weather and sabotage by militants, the oil ministry said on Wednesday.

Iraq exported 69.1 million barrels of oil in January for an average of 2.22 million barrels per day (bpd), down from 72.6 million barrels for an average of 2.34 million bpd in December, figures released by the ministry showed.

Revenue was also down, from $7.32 billion in December to $7.07 billion in January.

The statement quoted Oil Minister Abdulkarim al-Luaybi as saying that exports from the south were harmed by bad weather, while "sabotage operations" curbed exports from the north.

Most of Iraq's crude is exported via its southern terminals near the port city of Basra, but a significant portion goes through a northern pipeline to the Turkish port of Ceyhan that is periodically bombed by militants.

Iraq is heavily dependent on oil exports, and the government is seeking to dramatically ramp up its sales to fund the reconstruction of its battered infrastructure.