Archive | 2020

KRG Council of Ministers reviews Public Expenses

Prime Minister Masrour Barzani on Wednesday chaired a cabinet meeting via video conference to discuss expenses and the need to adapt to the current budget while protecting public entitlements. In the meeting attended by Deputy Prime Minister Qubad Talabani, the Council of Ministers stressed continued commitment to reducing salaries of senior officials, including those retired […]

GKP to Cut Workforce by 40%

By John Lee. Gulf Keystone Petroleum (GKP) has provided an operational and corporate update in advance of Friday's Annual General Meeting: Jón Ferrier, Gulf Keystone's Chief Executive Officer, said: "In response to the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic and macroeconomic conditions, we took decisive actions to preserve liquidity and safeguard the long-term health of the business. We […]

New Zealand to Close Embassy in Iraq

New Zealand's Foreign Affairs Minister, Winston Peters, has announced the closure of the New Zealand Embassy in Baghdad. Mr Peters said: "This decision to permanently close the Embassy was not taken lightly and is in no way an indication of any change in the value that New Zealand places on its relationship with Iraq. "The […]

KRG discusses Land Ownership, Service Contracts

Prime Minister Masrour Barzani chaired a video conference meeting on Tuesday on notarisation of lands and residential housing projects. In the meeting attended by Deputy Prime Minister Qubad Talabani and other cabinet ministers, Prime Minister Barzani spoke about separating land plots allocated for projects in a bid to resolve the issue of lands granted to […]

Iraqi Cabinet outlines Funding for Investment Projects

The Cabinet held its regular meeting in Baghdad on Tuesday under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi. At the start of the meeting, the Prime Minister thanked health teams for their sacrifices on the front line during the Covid-19 pandemic. The Cabinet received a briefing from the Minister of Health on the latest developments and the […]

IBBC Young Executives Network holds Webinar

The Iraq Britain Business Council (IBBC)'s Young Executives Network held a Webinar on Wednesday highlighting the effects of COVID 19 and how the YEN can offer to support their members during this difficult period. On the Panel was Mr Sammy Sharifi Co Chair of IBBC YEN, Ms Layla Al-Hassani of BP & Co Chair of […]

Iran to buy more Basic Commodities from Iraq

Governor of the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) unveiled plans for using a joint mechanism with Iraq to purchase basic commodities and items excluded from the list of anti-Iranian sanctions. Iran's top banker Abdonnaser Hemmati, who is on a visit to Iraq with a ranking economic delegation, held a meeting with his Iraqi counterpart Ali […]

Video: Anger as Iraq announces Pension Cuts

From Al Jazeera. Any opinions expressed are those of the author(s), and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Iraq is facing its worst economic crisis since 2003, worsened by the global drop in oil prices and the coronavirus pandemic. Mustafa al-Kadhimi's government led by has proposed austerity measures, including capping the […]

US Policy Puts Iraqi Dialogue at Risk

By Toby Dodge, for Chatham House. Any opinions expressed are those of the author(s), and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Twin Pillars of US Policy Puts Iraqi Dialogue at Risk A new strategic dialogue between US and Iraqi governments is meant to place the bilateral relationship on a sustainable basis. […]

Iraq "The Best Place on Earth to find and Produce Oil"

By John Lee. Petrel Resources has said that its operations in Iraq, which had been dormant for some time, are "once again showing life". In its Preliminary Results for the Year Ended 31/12/19, the company said: "Our Iraqi, director, Riadh, is actively promoting our ongoing interest in participating in the development of the many oil […]