Royal Dutch Shell has begun transferring operations at the Majnoon oilfield to the Iraqi Oil Ministry, Reuters reports.

The ministry anticipates increasing production from the field to 400,000 barrels a day (b/d) from its current 235,000 b/d, according to the news agency.

The ministry has put in place a new management team to take over as Shell slowly exits operations between now and June, the news agency reports.

“The priority of the new management team is to cut the cost of producing a barrel (of crude) from Majnoon by 30 percent,” the Iraqi Minister of Oil, Jabar El Luaibi said, according to Reuters.

Earlier this year, Reuters reported that Shell would exit the field after having been penalized by the Iraqi government for inadequate development at Majnoon.

A number of international oil companies have expressed interest in the field.