Weekly Security Update, 14 – 20 October 2014
By Anne-Laure Barbosa at Constellis Consulting The Iraqi parliament’s approval of Sunni MP Khaled al-Obeidi as defense minister, and Mohammed al-Ghabban, a Shia member of the Badr Organisation, as interior minister, will provide a stronger political foundation for Abadi to counter the ISIS insurgency. Ghabban’s appointment follows weeks of negotiations and resistance from Abadi to nominate […]
Basra Light Crude may Split into 2 Grades
By John Lee. The Iraqi State Oil Marketing Organization (SOMO) has proposed splitting its Basra Light crude supply into two grades. Reuters cites trade sources as saying that SOMO and has requested feedback on the proposal by the end of the week from buyers in Asia. Iraq now plans to offer two grades of crude for […]
Hanwha Receives Further Payment for Bismaya
By John Lee. Hanwha E&C has announced that the company received the fourth deposit of US$387.5 million (452 billion Iraqi dinars) for the construction of the Bismayah New City (pictured) outside Baghdad. This sum brings Hanwha receipts from the project to $1.9375 billion, 25 percent of the total construction cost. The $8-billion project is the […]
Iraq Seeks to Increase Electricity Imports
By John Lee. Iraq's new Minister of Electricity, Qasim Mohammad Abid Hammadi al-Fahadawi [Qassim al-Fahdawi] (pictured), is to travel to Iran on Tuesday to hold talks on electricity imports. At a meeting with his Iranian counterpart, Hamid Chitchian, the Minister will also discuss the expansion of economic ties between Tehran and Baghdad. In 2013, the […]
Non-Members Welcomed at IBBC Conference
Iraqi and British politicians will be joining senior business leaders from both countries at the Iraq Britain Business Council’s (IBBC) eighth London conference in early November. Entitled “Iraq – Accentuating the Positive”, the event is being held at the spectacular Institution for Civil Engineers building, One Great George Street, on November 5th and 6th. In light […]
UN sees Improvements in KRI Human Rights
Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani today received Ivan Šimonović, the United Nations Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights, and his accompanying delegation. The delegation said that compared to their previous visit back in 2011, they noticed sound improvements made by the Kurdistan Region in the areas of diplomacy, foreign relations, infrastructure, a free press, freedom of speech, […]
Rains Causes Flooding in Refugee Camps
By John Lee. Heavy rains have reportedly flooded refugee camps in Dohuk, where an estimated 100,000 Iraqis, mostly Assyrians and Yazidis, are living having fled from the Islamic State. According to a report from AINA, hundreds of refugees held protests to call attention to their miserable living conditions and to demand emergency relief from the […]
Video: Minorities join Fight Against ISIL
From Al Jazeera. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Several minority ethnic groups are trying defend their towns from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. They say they've lost confidence in the Iraqi army, and its ability to protect their […]
Refugee Crisis Strikes Anbar
By Patrick M Schmidt. The United Nations (UN) has estimated that nearly 180,000 civilians have been displaced from Anbar province following the advance of the Islamic State (IS) into the province. These individuals add to the nearly 1.8 million Iraqis who have been displaced since the initial expansion of the Islamic State earlier this summer. […]
Islamic State Fighter Jet Concerns
By Patrick M Schmidt. Concerns are now mounting with Western defense agencies that the Islamic State (IS) has gained control of Syrian fighter jets. It is believed the captured at least three jets during their assault of the Syrian air force base, al-Jarrah. The fighters may be receiving training from Iraqi pilots who have defected […]
Currency Auction Results, 20th Oct
By John Lee. The Central Bank of Iraq (CBI) has reported that 18 banks took part in its currency auction on Monday. A total of $231,723,000 was sold at a price of 1166 Iraqi Dinars (IQD) per dollar. (Source: Central Bank of Iraq)
Declaration of Commerciality on Khalakan Block
Range Energy Resources has announced that, on October 16, 2014, Gas Plus Khalakan ("GPK"), the sole contractor of the Khalakan Block in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, announced by press release that it has declared the Shewashan light oil discovery commercial under the terms of the Khalakan Production Sharing Contract (the "PSC") and is preparing […]