* August oil exports rise by 255,000 bpd from July
* Basra shipments rebound to 2.308 million bpd
* Iraq aiming for 2.9 million bpd exports by year end
By Ahmed Rasheed
BAGHDAD, Sept 1 (Reuters) - Iraq's oil exports rose to anaverage of 2.579 million barrels per day (bpd) in August, theoil ministry said on Sunday, due to increased shipments fromsouthern oil fields which have helped it move closer to ayear-end target.
Exports were higher than in July when Iraq exported 2.324million bpd on average. OPEC's second-largest producer wants toexport 2.9 million bpd per day by the end of the year.
August oil exports, which have generated revenues of $8.3billion, are the highest in months due to increased shipmentsfrom the southern ports, oil ministry spokesman Asim Jihad said.
Iraq shipped 2.308 million bpd from the southern oil hub ofBasra, up from 2.144 million the previous month, a statementfrom state-run South Oil Co.'s media office showed.
"Shipments from southern oilfields were higher by around58,000 barrels than what has been set at the August loadingprogram," the statement said.
Iraq expects output to rise by 400,000 bpd by the end ofthis year due to the start-up of the Royal Dutch Shell operated Majnoon oilfield in southern Iraq and other smallersources.
Garraf oilfield in the south, developed by Petronas andJapan Petroleum Exploration Co. Ltd started productionof 35,000 barrels per day on Saturday, Jihad said.
Iraq is planning to conduct maintenance this month at itssouthern terminals to expand export capacity but has saidexports would continue normally.
Iraq needs to upgrade its long-neglected energyinfrastructure to boost production and consolidate its positionas a major oil producer, but export bottlenecks and repeatedattacks on a pipeline to Turkey have so far kept the countryshort of its 2013 target.