With just four weeks left to the parliamentary elections, and all the uncertainty and risk that that brings, it is interesting to note that money is still flowing into the country and oil is still flowing out. On the production and export side, the latest figures look very positive, and Lukoil has just started production […]
By John Lee. In an interview with Agence France-Presse, United Nations envoy to Iraq Nickolay Mladenov has been sharply critical of Iraqi politicians and their campaigning platforms. Mladenov has remarked that not enough Iraqi politicians are campaigning on issues of public concern, such as the supply of clean drinking water, a reliable electricity supply and reducing […]
By John Lee. The following article was published by Reidar Visser, an historian of Iraq educated at the University of Oxford. It is reproduced here with the author’s permission. The opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Until now the struggle over the 2014 Iraqi budget […]
By John Lee. The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee has requested that Kellogg Brown and Root (KBR) disclose volumes of internal documents relating to a confidentiality agreement staff were asked to sign which allegedly violates US law. According to The Washington Post the allegations suggest that an agreement staff were asked to sign required them […]
By John Lee. Liwa’ Smaysim, the Iraqi Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, has stated that Iraq has plans to organize a major conference later this year for all local and foreign excavation teams in order to explore latest technologies in archaeological excavations. He also indicated that the ministry hopes that this gathering will be the […]
By Mark DeWeaver. Since the Central Bank of Iraq (CBI) began changing the rules for its USD auctions in 2012, Iraq has been operating a de facto dual exchange rate system. (There’s a summary of some of the CBI’s recent rule changes on pages 12-14 of this report from Sansar Capital.) For those with access […]
By John Lee. Reuters has reported an unnamed Iraqi government source describing what is supposedly the real reason for the delay in exporting 100,000 bpd from the Kurdish Regional Government to Turkey. As part of an interim deal , this oil was intended to be exported through the Iraqi state pipeline network. The oil represents a […]
By Constellis Consulting www.constellis-consulting.com As the campaign for the upcoming parliamentary elections is set to start on April 01, Iraq’s political environment was marked by inter-party competition and developments which could threaten the organisation of the votes. On 25 March, the board of the Independent Electoral Commission (IHEC) resigned to protest against political and judicial interference, after the […]
By John Lee. Britain's South London Gallery has put on a diverse display of contemporary Iraqi art, to excellent reviews such as this one in London's Evening Standard. Events magazine Time Out also praised the exhibition. The exhibition, entitled Welcome to Iraq was first displayed last year at the Venice Biennale. Art critic Ben Luke noted how the show's […]
By John Lee. Election campaigning began formally today across Iraq, Asharq al-Awsat reports. Perhaps optimistically, they suggest this marks the end of the crisis with the Independent High Electoral Commission, following their return to work last week. Campaign posters and billboards already adorn many parts of Baghdad, as seen in this Al Arabiya slideshow. Radio Free Iraq […]
By John Lee. On 20th March, 2014, Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani announced a KRG goodwill initiative to make a contribution to Iraq oil export to give the ongoing negotiations with Baghdad the maximum chance of success. The Prime Minister stated that the contribution to oil export from the KRG would be 100,000 barrels per day, […]
By Nora Lenderby. Iraq Business News is pleased to announce that our intrepid reporter John Lee has been honoured with an award from the Goldman-Rothschild Institute for Monetary Efficiency. Although no formal announcement has been made, we understand that the award relates to the maintenance of monetary stability in Iraq. At first Mr Lee was […]
