When discussing Iraq’s potential, it is easy to lapse into superlatives. The sheer volume of reserves and size of investment needed to develop them are on a scale no other country can match. Iraq currently ranks third globally in proven oil reserves, with a total of more than 143.1 billion barrels. The cost of extracting these reserves is approximately US$1 per barrel, the lowest in the world. However, the bulk of Iraq’s data comes from exploration performed more than three decades ago. With more than 70% of the country unexplored and 3-D seismic technology only recently introduced, estimates of total oil reserves still approach 350 billion barrels—a figure that would make Iraq the world’s wealthiest hydrocarbon country.