Iraq is expected to put off passing its long-delayed oil and gas legislation until after national polls in January, the head of the Iraqi parliament's oil and gas committee said on Saturday.

"All the indications point to the fact there is no hope for putting the oil and gas law on the agenda during the time remaining for this parliament," said Ali Hussain Balou, a Kurdish politician and sharp critic of Iraq's Oil Ministry.

"Due to the insurmountable conflicts between political blocs, passage of this law could be delayed until the next parliament," he said.

The global oil industry has been waiting for years for passage of the legislation, which includes a law on how to share revenues from oil exports between Iraq's various regions and a law resurrecting the national Iraqi oil company.

But the laws have been tied up in an entrenched feud between minority Kurds and the Arab-led government in Baghdad over control of oil resources, land and power.

Investors see the law as crucial to establishing a clear legal framework that will minimise risks in a country already seen as fraught with security and legal dangers.

Iraq, which has the world's third largest oil reserves, is struggling to modernise its oil sector and is courting global oil majors for long-term development contracts. Iraq is due to hold its parliamentary elections on January 16, the first national polls since 2005.-Reuters