OREANDA-NEWS. December 30, 2011. China National Petroleum Corp. Thursday loaded its first 650,000-barrel crude-oil cargo from Iraq's Al-Ahdab oil field, the company said Friday.

 The news means China, the world's second-largest oil consumer, is starting to reap dividends from the project just over three years after it signed an oil development deal with the Iraqi government, in November 2008.

 CNPC, the parent of PetroChina Co. /quotes/zigman/257868/quotes/nls/ptr PTR -0.10% , started construction at Al-Ahdab in March 2009.

 First-phase output at the field reached 60,300 barrels a day in June, half a year earlier than planned, and the construction of the project's second phase, targeting capacity of 120,500 barrels a day, was completed Friday, three years ahead of schedule, the state-owned company said in its in-house newsletter.

 CNPC is also developing Iraq's Halfaya oil field with Total SA /quotes/zigman/167990/quotes/nls/tot TOT -0.47% and Malaysia's Petroliam Nasional Bhd. With BP PLC /quotes/zigman/247026/quotes/nls/bp BP -0.35% , it is also developing Iraq's Rumaila oil field.