UK "Should be Partner of Choice for Kurdistan"
By John Lee. The British Consul General in Erbil, Hugh Evans, has told Rudaw that businesses should use Kurdistan as a gateway for the rest of Iraq. He added: "We realize there are political problems in the energy industry (with Baghdad threatening oil companies working in the south that they cannot work in Kurdistan too), […]
Iraq Finalises Gasoil Term Contract
By John Lee. Vitol and Glencore have finalised term contracts to sell over 1.5 million tonnes of gasoil to Iraq's State Oil Marketing Organisation (SOMO), reports Reuters. Vitol will supply four cargoes of 500 ppm sulphur gasoil, along with three cargoes from Glencore, through 2014 at a premium of $7.37 a barrel over Middle East quotes […]
Gazprom Delays Oilfield Launch
By John Lee. Russia's Gazprom Neft has postponed initial production at the Badra oilfield until next year, due to safety concerns and logistical problems. Reuters reports that the company announced in a Eurobond prospectus that it had postponed the December launch due to "the failure on the part of certain contractors to fulfill their contractual […]
Iraq Stock Market Report
Advertising Feature Rabee Securities Iraq Stock Exchange (ISX) market report (week ending: 21st November 2013). Please click here to download a table of listed companies and their associated ticker codes. The RSISX index ended the week at ID1,751 (-0.7%)/ $1,866 (-0.9%) (weekly change). The number of week traded shares was 4.8bn and the weekly trading […]
New Dates for Iraq Future Energy Conference
In light of the recent events in Basra, Iraq Future Energy and Iraq Energy Forum - which was due to be held from 26 – 28 November 2013 at the Iraq Energy City in Basra, Iraq - will now take place from the 3 – 5 June, 2014. Kay Mitchell, Portfolio Director - Middle East, […]
Weekly Security Update 14 - 20 November
By Tom Walker, Director, Assaye Risk COUNTRY OVERVIEW The Ankara dance with Erbil and Baghdad continued for much of this reporting period as Turkey’s President Erdogan continues to tread a fine balance between multiple regional stakeholders in the hope of neutralizing the al Qaeda (AQ) threat in northern Syria and of maximizing to potential of […]
The Iraqi Week in Numbers
This week in our Iraq Business News newsetter: 52 senior UK business executives visit Iraq; 27 articles for our readers; 16 new jets for Iraqi Airways; 2 major new contracts; 1 great Iraqi business website -- share it with your friends and colleagues!
Iraqi Airways Buys 16 Bombardiers
Bombardier Aerospace has announced that Iraqi Airways, the national carrier of Iraq, has signed a letter of intent (LOI) to acquire five CS300 mainline jetliners. The LOI includes options on 11 CS300 aircraft. Based on CS300 airliner list price, a firm order would be valued at approximately $387 million US and could increase to $1.26 […]
Rotana Opens Second Hotel in Iraq
By John Lee. Hotel management company Rotana has opened its second property in Iraq. The Karbala Rayhaan is a five-star property in the tourist city of Karbala, which attracts more than 12 million visitors a year. Omer Kaddouri, executive vice president and chief operating officer, said: “In 2012 Iraq posted a GDP growth rate of […]
Petrojet wins Gas Pipeline Contract
By John Lee. Egypt's Petrojet has won a $100-million tender to design, supply and install the butane pipeline project from Nasiriyah to Khor Al-Zubair in Basra. Company boss Mohamed Shemy [Mohamed Shimy] said the project is to be completed within 18 months. According to a report from Egypt Independent, the company beat competition from Russia, […]
KRG President Barzani meets UK Trade Delegation
Ten members of the Iraq Britain Business Council's trade and education mission to Iraq met the President of the Kurdistan region, Massoud Barzani, at his residence North of Erbil on Wednesday (November 20th) The members, part of the biggest ever trade delegation to Baghdad and Erbil, were warmly welcomed by the President. The IBBC’s Executive […]
Chinese Firm Wins Badra Contract
By John Lee. Russia's Gazprom Neft has picked a contractor to drill six production wells in the Badra field in Iraq which it operates. China’s Zhongman Petroleum and Natural Gas Group Co., Ltd (ZPEC) has won the tender. The contract includes engineering, procurement and drilling of wells. Two rigs will start drilling in March 2014. […]



