Iraq's Minister for Transport has said a tender to build an airport in the Middle Euphrates region is expected to be floated in October. According to Reuters, he could not give an estimated cost for the project, which will be located between the holy Shi'ite southern cities of Najaf and Kerbala, but other sources estimate […]
Dozens of taxi drivers in Duhok demonstrated this week asking for an increase in their allocation of fuel, and for the provision of better quality fuel. As a result, Duhok's Governor confirmed that taxi drivers' allocations will be increased. One protester, Khalil Mohammad (40), told Alsumaria News that as oil prices increased, taxi drivers were […]
The volume of waters from the Tigris River reaching Iraq has been receding to the extent that several water purification plants in the Province of Missan [Maysan] are running without water. Mohannad Kadhem, the head of water purification and distribution in the southern province, said the problem started with tributaries belonging to the river feeding […]
Stores selling alcohol in the Iraqi capital were shut down by the Baghdad provincial council on Monday amid protests from their owners, according to a report from AKnews. Store owners were caught by surprise when police patrols arrived unannounced at their premises with orders from the provincial council to close down all unlicensed shops and […]
Iraq’s State Oil Marketing Organisation (SOMO) has adjusted its official selling prices for its Basra Light and Kirkuk crude grades for March. In common with some other countries, Iraq’s oil is priced relative to regional benchmark prices: For shipments to US, contracts are priced are relative to the Argus Sour Crude Index (ASCI); Shipments to […]
Reuters, quoting Iraq's Minister for Transport, reports that a tender will be issued by the end of this year for the building of the multibillion-dollar 'Grand Faw' port south of Basra. Talks are ongoing with investors from Australia, France, Germany, Italy and the UAE to help finance the project. After a presentation of the project's […]
Vehicle imports through the Haji Omaran [Haj Omran, Haj Umran] border crossing (pictured) on the Iranian border north of Erbil have dropped by 73 per cent, from 2,000 cars per month in 2010 to 1,195 vehicles in the first two month of 2011, according to a report from AK News. Salar Omar, vehicles department official […]
A spokesman for the ministry of electricity has reported that plans are being considered to move the national grid underground, in order to prevent citizens illegally taking power supplies directly from overhead distribution lines. Musab al-Mudarres told AKnews that the practice of taking electricity directly from local power lines is widespread across Iraqi, and the […]
[Update: The National Investment Commission (NIC) has issued a statement on 22nd March 2011 on behalf of the Chairman of the Nineveh Investment Commission, denying these reports of contracts signed with South Korean companies.] The Chairman of the Nineveh Investment Commission said on Wednesday that it has signed investment contracts with 20 South Korean companies […]
Iraqi mobile operator AsiaCell has threatened to sue Kuwait-based telecoms provider Zain, after it allegedly distributed millions of unlicensed SIM cards, hitting AsiaCell's market share. It has also disconnected several million Zain Iraq subscribers whose lines have not been fully licensed by the Communications and Media Commission (CMC). AsiaCell, in which Qatar Telecommunications Co (Qtel) […]
WesternZagros Resources has announced that it has closed its previously announced private placement offering (the "Offering") of common shares of the Company (the "Shares"). The Company sold, through a syndicate of agents, 89,665,352 Shares at a price of Cdn$0.48 per share for gross proceeds of Cdn$43 million. The Shares issued under the Offering are subject […]
By Chris Bowers, British Consul General in Erbil. This article was originally published by Rudaw, and is re-published with permission by Iraq Business News. It has been a momentous few weeks in the Middle East as hopes and aspirations that had lain dormant for a generation or more have stirred. British Prime Minister Cameron visited […]
