Iraq Waives Visa Restrictions for Pilgrims
By John Lee. Azzaman reports that the Iraqi government has removed visa restrictions on pilgrims visiting Muslim shrines during ‘holy’ occasions. The move will make it possible for pilgrims to fly to the country and obtain their visas at the Iraqi airports instead of applying for it at the Iraqi embassies in their countries. Muslim […]
World Bank to Finance Lafarge Cement Plant in Kerbala
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is providing a $70 million loan to help renovate a cement factory in Iraq, part of an effort to support the local building sector and aid in the country’s reconstruction. The financing will allow Kerbala Cement Manufacturing, a subsidiary of France’s Lafarge, to rehabilitate a state-owned plant […]
Tough "Cybercrimes Bill" on Hold in Iraq
By Laith Hammoudi. This article was originally published by the Institute for War and Peace Reporting, iwpr.net, and it is reproduced by Iraq Business News with permission. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. A tough new law that could place severe restrictions […]
Kurdistan and South Korea Cement Relations
Minister Falah Mustafa, the KRG's Head of Foreign Relations, met with Mr Tae-In Chung, the Deputy Director General for the African and Middle Eastern Affairs Bureau of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade of South Korea to discuss bilateral ties. Both sides discussed areas of cooperation in political, economic, and cultural fields between Kurdistan […]
Video: Iraq sees Worst Flooding in Years
The streets of the Iraq capital turned into rivers after three days of heavy rain. Many parts of Baghdad are totally flooded, with poor infrastructure making it worse for the people. Some residents are accusing the government for not helping them. Al Jazeera's Omar al-Saleh reports from Baghdad: (Source: Al Jazeera)
LUKoil Slashes Iraq Oil Output Plan
Russia’s LUKoil has said it has cut its oil production plan in Iraq by almost a third, in line with the local government’s plans to increase the lifetime of its oilfields, reports Al Arabiya. Andrei Kuzyayev, head of LUKoil Overseas, told Russian state TV channel Rossiya-24 that LUKoil is now looking for peak production at […]
Eide Steps Down as MD of DNO
DNO International has announced that its long-serving Managing Director, Helge Eide (pictured), is stepping down effective 31 December 2012. "After almost 17 years at DNO International, including the past 13 years as Managing Director, it was time to make way for a new generation of leadership," said Eide. He noted that he originally considered leaving […]
Diplomats in Erbil Reflect on 2012
Minister Falah Mustafa Bakir, the Head of the Department of Foreign Relations, on Sunday hosted a meeting with the diplomatic corps and other foreign representatives to reflect on and discuss key events in 2012. Minister Bakir reflected on the growing diplomatic presence in Kurdistan as a testament of its successful outreach policy with the international […]
Iraq Stock Market Report
Advertising Feature Rabee Securities Iraq Stock Exchange (ISX) market report (week ending: 26th December 2012). Please click here to download a table of listed companies and their associated ticker codes. ID1,615 / $1,747 (-1.8%) (weekly change). The number of week traded shares was 16.4bn and the weekly trading volume was ID25.3bn ($21.1mn). Note: ISX will […]
How Much Does Iraq Really Need For its Budget?
By Seerwan Jafar. 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. Iraq’s 2013 budget amounts to US$118 billion. But the figures don’t add up. Doing the sums results in one conclusion: unless something is done differently, Iraq […]
Deloitte Reports on MENA Oil, Gas M&A
A new report from Deloitte, entitled "Mergers and Acquisitions in the Oil and Gas Industry -- Current upstream M&A issues and transaction considerations", looks at the factors affecting investment in Iraq: "Iraqi production, which has now passed the 3 million barrel per day level, is benefiting from foreign investors with the expertise to exploit these […]
Iraq Unveils Plan to Revamp Science Infrastructure
According to a report from SciDev.Net, the Iraqi government plans to spend more than $9 billion over the next five years to rebuild its scientific research infrastructure and bolster science and technology education. Ali Al-Adeeb, the country's minister of higher education and scientific research, said the plans involve establishing 12 universities and 28 research centres, […]