By John Lee. Oil exports from the Kurdistan Region will resume in the first week of August, the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) has announced, adding that the decision was a confidence-building measure aimed at solving once and for all the ongoing oil and gas issues in Iraq. The MNR said that despite initial reluctance […]
By Ahmad Salama. This article was originally published by Niqash. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. The conflict with Syria is threatening to spill over borders, as Iraqi Kurdistan and Baghdad line up on opposing sides. Now the face-off has gone beyond […]
By John Lee. Microsoft is reportedly about to start e-governance projects in Maysan. Suhair Al-Minshidawi, the Chairman of the e-governance Committee in Maysan province said in a press statement: "The representative of the company showed, during a meeting with her, his company's willingness to work in this field. "The projects include electronic systems specializing in […]
By John Lee. A member of the employment committee in Erbil province has announced that 1,292 new teachers will be employed in the province. According to a report from AKnews, Hussein Kakil said it is necessary to fill the vacancies before schools re-open in September. The Kurdistan Regional Government is said to have 17,000 job […]
By Reidar Visser. The following article was published by Reidar Visser, an historian of Iraq educated at the University of Oxford and currently based at the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs. It is reproduced here with the author’s permission. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq […]
By Padraig O'Hannelly. Tensions between Iraqi Kurdistan and the central government in Baghdad have increased significantly in recent times, both politically and commercially. On the political front, the "difference of opinion" about the sending of Iraqi troops to the border between Iraqi Kurdistan and Syria was eclipsed by reports that the Kurdistan Regional Government has […]
By John Lee. The Iraqi Oil Ministry has re-confirmed that Chevron is barred from contracts with the Federal Goverment in Baghdad, and says the company "should be ashamed of their action" in dealing with the Kurdistan Regional Government, which it accuses of smuggling. The Ministry issued the following statement on Wednesday: Chevron Oil Company announced […]
By John Lee. Abdul-Mahdy al-Ameedi, the director of the Iraqi oil ministry's contracts directorate, has said that Iraq will soon set a date for international oil companies (IOCs) to bid to develop the giant Nassiriya oilfield. The largely undeveloped field has estimated reserves of just under 5 billion barrels. According to information from Reuters, there […]
By John Lee. Reuters reports that Baghdad is working to cancel Total's involvement in the Halfaya oilfield, following the company's announcement that it signed exploration deals in Kurdistan. Abdul-Mahdy al-Ameedi, the director of the oil ministry's contracts directorate, said on Wednesday: "We are working to cancel Total's stake in the Halfaya contract. We will disqualify […]
By John Lee. Following months of speculation, France's Total has announced the completion of an acquisition of 35% interest in two exploration blocks in Iraqi Kurdistan. In a brief statement, the company said: "Total ... announced the signature of a Farm-in Agreement in two exploration blocks in Kurdistan Region of Iraq. "Total has completed an […]
By John Lee. Oil and gas engineering group Penspen has signed an agreement with Siemens to provide engineering and procurement services for a new simple cycle power plant in Southern Iraq. Siemens has agreed a base scope with the State Company for Oil Projects (SCOP) to work on the engineering and supply of the power […]
In keeping with Barack Obama's presidential campaign promise, the US has withdrawn its troops from Iraq and by the end of 2012 US spending in Iraq will be just five per cent of what it was at its peak in 2008. In a special two-part series, AlJazeera's "Fault Lines" program travels across Iraq to take […]
