The tripling of Iraq's oil production capacity could mean the end of the Putin regime

The end of the Putin regime not that far away if things go well in Iraq

You may remember what investor William Browder said only a few days ago:

There is nothing behind the facade of Vladimir Putin's regime in Russia, says William Browder from Hermitage Capital Management."All it will take is a fall in the price of oil to $60 a barrel and Putin will be gone within a year.

If things go well in Iraq, the end of the Putin regime might not be very far away:

Iraq is poised to flood the oil market by tripling its capacity to pump crude by 2020 and is collaborating with Iran on strategy in a move that will challenge Saudi Arabia's grip on the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries.

"We feel the world needs to be assured of fuel for economic growth," Hussain al-Shahristani, Deputy Prime Minister for Energy in Iraq told oil industry delegates attending a Chatham House Middle East energy conference.

Al Shahristani said on Tuesday that Iraq plans to boost its capacity to produce oil to 9m barrels a day (bpd) by the end of the decade as Baghdad rushes to bolster its economy, which is still shattered by war and internal conflict. Iraq was producing 3m bpd in December, according to the International Energy Agency.

Iraq's intention to challenge Saudi Arabia's status as the "swing producer" in the OPEC cartel could see a dramatic fall in oil prices if Baghdad decides to break the group's quotas and sell more of its crude on the open market.

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