Iraq is pumping only 180,000 barrels a day from its northern oil fields, the ones coveted by the Kurds, around Kirkuk -- compared to the 600,000 that could be produced. Says the Wall Street Journal:

In the second half of last year, one stretch of pipelines connecting Kirkuk with the Turkish Mediterranean port of Ceyhan -- the main outlet for Iraq's northern oil exports -- pumped oil for only 43 days. The rest of the time the pipes sat idle, leaking crude through dozens of holes.

Why? Smugglers, insurgents, disgrunted tribal leaders. In any case, before the U.S. invasion Iraq produced 2.5 million barrels a day. In 2007, it's 1.9 mbd, says the Journal, down from 2006.