Billions of dollars' worth of Iraq's declared oil production over the past four years is unaccounted for, a US newspaper reports today.
The New York Timessaid between 100,000 and 300,000 barrels of Iraq's daily output of roughly 2 million barrels is missing, possibly due to corruption or smuggling.
The newspaper cited a draft report prepared by the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) and government energy analysts which is expected to be released next week.
The discrepancy was valued between $5 million and $15 million daily, using a $50 per barrel average, the report said.
That adds up to billions of dollars over the four years since the March 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq.
The newspaper was provided the draft report by a separate government office that received a review copy. The GAO declined to discuss the draft.
The report did not make a final conclusion on what happened to the missing oil, and provided alternative explanations besides corruption or smuggling, including possible Iraqi overstating of its production.
A State Department official who works on energy matters offered possible explanations including pipeline sabotage, or inaccurate reporting of oil production in southern Iraq.
"Crude oil is not as lucrative in the region as refined products, but we're not ruling that out either," the official said.
"There is not an issue of insurgency, per se, but it could be funding Shia factions, and that could very well be true."
"That would be a concern if they were using smuggling money to blow up American soldiers or kill Sunnis or do anything that could harm the unity of the country," the Times quoted the official as saying.
The newspaper characterised the report as the most comprehensive look thus far at what it called faltering US efforts to rebuild Iraq's oil and electricity sectors.
Erik Kreil, an oil expert at the US Department of Energy who is familiar with the analysis, said a review of industry figures worldwide indicated Iraq's stated production figures did not add up.
"Either they're producing less, or they're producing what they say and the difference is completely unaccounted for in any of the places we think it should go," Mr Kreil.