ZUBAIR OILFIELD, Iraq, Jan 16 (Reuters) - Iraq and U.S.

oil services firm Halliburton ( HAL ) are close to finalising an

agreement to develop the Nahr Bin Omar oilfield, the head of

Iraq's Basra Oil Company (BOC) told Reuters on Thursday.

Bassem Abdul Karim, director general of state-run BOC, said

Iraq's oil ministry and Halliburton ( HAL ) are expected to sign a

confidentiality agreement in the coming days, after which Iraq

will provide Halliburton ( HAL ) with data on the Nahr Bin Omar field

and its installations.

Under the deal, Halliburton ( HAL ) will help Iraq in increasing

production at the field to 300,000 barrels per day (bpd), Abdul

Karim said, though he did not specify a timeline. The field

currently produces around 50,000 bpd.

"Halliburton ( HAL ) will also help Iraq to produce 300 million

cubic feet of gas from the field", said Abul Karim.

Abdul Karim said oil production at the West Qurna 1 field,

operated by PetroChina in southern Iraq, is expected to reach

750,000 bpd by the end of 2025, up from the current 550,000 bpd.

PetroChina holds the largest stake in the field following

Exxon's exit.

To reduce its gas import bill, Iraq has selected China

Petroleum Engineering & Construction Corporation (CPECC) to

develop a $1.7 billion gas project at the Nahr Bin Omar field,

which will produce 300 million standard cubic feet (mscf) of

gas, according to the BOC manager.

"We are in talks with CPECC to reduce the project's cost,

and final signing is imminent," he said.

Asked about the impact of the latest sanctions targeting

Russia on the global crude supplies and if Iraq is ready to lift

production, Abdul Karim said Iraq has the capacity to increase

its oil production by 200,000 barrels per day (bpd) immediately

if asked by OPEC.

Iraq's oil exports from its southern ports averaged 3.232

million bpd in December, he added.