A key element of communication has to be the website, but it is remarkable how many Iraqi government websites are out of date or even expired; to take just two examples, the Iraqi Parliament website’s English pages have not been updated for nearly three years, while the Petroleum Contracts Licensing Directorate (PCLD) has let its domain registration elapse.

But even more embarrassingly this week, the website of the Basra Investment Commission was hijacked by foreign political group, whose name we will not mention as we don’t want to help their publicity effort; having broadcast the group’s propaganda, the site is currently “down for maintenance”.

Instead of the ubiquitous animated graphics and analogue clock, those in charge of public sector websites should aim to provide clear, understandable and reliable information to Iraqis and foreigners alike.

The commission is also due to sign a contract with the UAE-based Bloom Properties to build 40,000 houses in Karbala province. Two years ago the government approved plans to build 1 million housing units for lower- and middle-income families by 2014.

An adviser to the NIC said Iraq is currently in talks with international companies to build infrastructure projects valued at a total of about $100 billion; the commission has already awarded $32 billion of infrastructure projects since 2008.

(Source: Bloomberg)

The company is delivering components to the plant for assembly, mostly for the Samand sedan model (pictured).

Operations at the plant, which has received investment from a local partner, started in 2011, the company said, without giving details about the partnership or the location.

(Source: Bloomberg)

Alexander V Kolomatsky, Project director for the Middle East at Gazprom, said the company had initially planned to reach the 15,000 bpd level by the last quarter of 2013 because the oil field, which is near Iraq’s border with Iran, had to be first cleared of landmines.

But progress in the de-mining work however has led to this figure being pulled forward to early 2013, with 60,000 bpd expected by mid year, and 120,000 bpd by the beginning of 2014.

The field, which has estimated reserves of 100 million barrels of oil, is being developed by Gazprom (30%), Korea’s KOGAS (22.5%), Malaysia’s Petronas (15%), Turkey’s TPAO (7.5%), and Iraq (25%).

(Source: AKnews. Iraq Energy)

AFBI provides expert diagnostic and analytical testing services to the Northern Ireland agri-food industry, and to clients abroad, and the Belfast Telegraph reports that it is among is among eight companies and organisations on the current Invest NI mission to Kurdistan.

The University of Mosul was established in 1967 and has centres of excellence in disciplines such as computing, environmental and water resources, sensors and agriculture.

Dr Margaret Patterson, AFBI’s head of food microbiology, said the agri-food industry will benefit from the link-up:

“We see the MoU as the first stage in a relationship that could bring positive benefits to both AFBI and the University of Mosul. Initially, it will bring students from the university to work alongside our expert teams in knowledge transfer activities that will benefit Kurdistan.“

(Source: Belfast Telegraph)

The managing director of the National Iranian Central Oilfields Company, Mehdi Fakour, said that eight drilling rigs are currently in operation in oilfields that are shared with Iraq, and that the output is “satisfactory”.

Iran reportedly produces 68,000 barrels per day of crude oil from four oilfields associated with Iraq: Naftshahr, Paydar Gharb, Dehloran and Aban.

Oil Minister Rostam Qasemi said in August 2011 that the Iranian government should consider plans for the development of joint oilfields in the border areas with Iraq.

By the end of the fifth development plan (2015), the country’s oil production must increase to 5.2 million barrels per day (bpd) and this should happen from the country’s joint fields,” the ISNA News Agency quoted Qasemi as saying.

In January, Iran and Iraq announced that the two countries have reached an agreement to develop joint oil fields in border areas to increase their crude output.

(Source: Tehran Times)

It was perhaps inevitable. An Iraqi politician would eventually declare the Interpol red flag notice for Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi “unconstitutional”.

There are many good reasons for being critical about the reasons that led to the original prosecution of Hashemi. In particular, the timing of the original Iraqi arrest warrant – just hours after the departure of the last US forces from Iraq in December 2011 – smacked of political opportunism. Subsequent allegations about mistreatment of the imprisoned guards of the Iraqi vice president have been met with unsatisfactory replies from the Iraqi judiciary that have prompted suspicion of whitewash on more than one occasion.

However, the Interpol red flag notice is in itself not “unconstitutional”. Iraq is an Interpol member and the government has the option of turning to Interpol to request international assistance for bringing suspects to court. The built-in checks and balances in the system in this case have nothing to do with the Iraqi constitution as such but with the ability of other Interpol member countries – including Turkey, where Hashemi is currently staying – to ignore the warrant or deny extradition if they judge its basis to be unsound or the prospects of a fair trial unlikely. This is precisely what Turkey is doing.

The three-year contract has an estimated value to Hill of approximately IQD 3.8 billion ($3.3 million).

The new Olympic-sized, 30,000-seat stadium, which will be designed to comply with FIFA standards, is expected to have a construction cost of approximately IQD 116 billion ($100 million).

“We are honored that the Ministry of Youth and Sports continues to show confidence in Hill,” said Mohammed Al Rais, Senior Vice President and Managing Director (Middle East) for Hill’s Project Management Group. “We look forward to helping manage construction of this prestigious project,” Al Rais added.

(Source: Hill International)