Women carrying firewood on head (B&W)

IRAQ - MARCH 2003:, Iraqi women carrying firewood walk through thick smoke from burning oil in an oil field near Basrah, Southern Iraq a week after British troops freed the city from Saddam Hussein's forces., Iraq possesses the world's second largest proven oil reserves, currently estimated at 112.5 billion barrels, about 11% of the world total and its gas fields are immense as well. Many experts believe that Iraq has additional undiscovered oil reserves, which might raise the total well beyond 250 billion barrels when serious prospecting resumes, putting Iraq closer to Saudi Arabia and far above all other oil producing countries. Iraq's oil is of high quality and it is very inexpensive to produce, making it one of the world's most profitable oil sources. Oil companies hope to gain production rights over these rich fields of Iraqi oil, worth hundreds of billions of dollars.