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He also said the next meeting of OPEC's
ministerial monitoring committee in Saudi Arabia would assess
member states' commitment to a current production reduction and
that current oil prices and markets were stable.
Turkey has asked Iraq to purchase more of its crude, Ghadhban
added, speaking to journalists in Baghdad a day after Iraqi
Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi travelled to Turkey to meet
President Tayyip Erdogan.
Ghadhban's comments come as the United States ramps up sanctions
pressure on Iraq's neighbour and ally Iran, especially over oil
exports.
Iraq relies heavily on Iranian gas imports for its electricity
supply, which is stretched more than usual during hot summer
months.
Lack of electricity was one complaint by protesters in
demonstrations that descended into violence in Iraq's oil hub of
Basra last year.
The United States is urging Baghdad to sign energy deals with
U.S. companies including a share for General Electric of a $14
billion power scheme that Washington says would help wean Iraq
of Iranian energy supplies.
Ghadhban said international oil companies were operating as
normal and assured them that oilfields in the south and north of
the country were safe and secure amid increased regional
tensions between the United States and Iran.
The United States evacuated non-essential staff from its
diplomatic missions in Iraq over unspecified threats from Iran
on Wednesday.
Sources close to foreign oil companies denied reports they were
also evacuating employees on Wednesday.
Iraq's Kerbala refinery in the south of the country will start
operating in 2022 with a production capacity of 150,000 barrels
per day, Ghadhban said.
(Reporting by Ahmed Rasheed; Writing by John Davison, Ahmed
Aboulenein; Editing by Jason Neely and Mark Potter)
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