UK Minister Promotes Political Unity
Minister for the Middle East Tobias Ellwood (pictured) visited Iraq with the Secretary of State for International Development, Justine Greening, and the Government’s Security Envoy to the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, Lieutenant General Sir Simon Mayall, to promote political unity in the country and to urge the immediate formation of a representative government. The delegation […]
KRG/UN Joint Press Statement
A comprehensive count carried out jointly by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and the United Nations indicates that some 850,000 Iraqis have been displaced and sought refuge in all three Kurdistan Region governorates since January 2014. According to the Kurdish Ministry of Planning and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) the vast majority of the […]
Yazidis Still Face Danger
By Shaida al-Ameen for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Thousands of Yazidi families currently face a dire humanitarian situation. They have been scattered in refugee camps, while the fate of hundreds of Yazidi girls who were kidnapped by the Islamic State (IS) remains unknown. […]
Afren Announces Half Yearly Results
By John Lee. Afren have released their Half-yearly Results for the six months ended 30 June 2014 and an update on its operations year-to-date 2014, in accordance with the reporting requirements of the EU Transparency Directive. Below is a summary of their Iraq operations and general financial results. Information contained within this release is un-audited […]
KRG Oil Exports Hit 8 Million Barrels
By John Lee. Turkish officials close to their country's energy policy have announced that a total of 8 million barrels of oil have been exported via the Turkish port of Ceyhan. According to officials, while some buyers have been deterred by legal threats from Baghdad, the number of buyers is in fact increasing. The Kurds […]
Worsening Conditions in Mosul
By John Lee. The Wall Street Journal has written a report based on six interviews with Mosul residents describing life in the city under the rule of the so called "Islamic State". In the report, citizens describe a Taliban like rule of brutality enacted upon those who are seen to transgress against the highly austere interpretation […]
Afren Suspends Associate Directors
By John Lee. Afren has released a statement on the recent suspension of the Associate Directors of the company pending the results of an investigation. The statement reads as follows: Afren plc ("Afren" or the "Company") announces that the Board has temporarily suspended Iain Wright and Galib Virani, both Associate Directors of the Company. Further […]
Kuwait Energy Optimistic on Iraq Investment
By Patrick Schmidt. During an oil and gas conference in Norway, Chief Executive Officer of Kuwait Energy, Sara Akbar (pictured) noted that recent events in Iraq do not sour her outlook for the petroleum industry in Iraq. This statement follows the evacuation of oil engineers and workers from Iraq by select energy companies over the preceding […]
North Oil Company: ISIL Burned 2 Wells
By John Lee. As Kurdish Peshmerga forces have continued their advance, capturing Batana mountain near Zumar, along with recent gains in Makhmur, they have announced ISIL is following a "scorched earth" policy. An official from Iraq's North Oil Company recently confirmed that after ISIL retreated from the Ain Zalah oil field, they set fire to […]
Lukman Faily on Haider al-Abadi
By John Lee. Iraq's Ambassador to the US Lukman Faily has given an interview with the journal Foreign Policy speaking of his long term friendship with Iraqi PM Haider al-Abadi. We learn that Amb. Faily and Abadi were students together in England in the 1980s and both campaigned to raise awareness of the crimes of the regime […]
Gulf Keystone KRG Operations Update
By John Lee. Gulf Keystone (pictured: CEO John Gerstenlauer) an independent oil and gas exploration, development and production company with operations in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq ("Kurdistan Region"), today announces its results for the six months ended 30 June 2014. Operational highlights · Gulf Keystone's operations in the Kurdistan Region remain secure and production […]
Currency Auction Results, 28th Aug
By John Lee. The Central Bank of Iraq (CBI) has reported that 18 banks took part in its currency auction on Thursday. A total of $193,850,000 was sold at a price of 1166 Iraqi Dinars (IQD) per dollar. (Source: Central Bank of Iraq)