Temperatures Soar, and Power Stations Hum
Temperatures are soaring to 45 degrees Celcius (113 degrees F) in Baghdad, and 50 degrees (122 degrees F) in Basra; nothing unusual about that at this time of year. What is unusual is the increased availability of electricity to cope with the demands of air-conditioners to deal with the problem. The Ministry of Electricity says […]
Cancellation of 4th Phase of Mubarak Port Welcomed
By John Lee. The Kuwaiti government has announced the cancellation of the fourth stage of the Mubarak Port, reports AKnews, due to harm to Iraqi navigation. Iraq’s Ministry of Transport called it an important step, but it does not eliminate the damage to Iraqi navigation. An adviser to the ministry, Karim al-Nouri, said: "We consider […]
Iraq Crude Production Overtakes Iran
By John Lee. Iraq’s crude oil production overtook Iran’s last month for the first time since 1988, when the countries ended their eight-year war, reports Bloomberg. Iraq pumped 2.984 million barrels a day in June, versus 2.963 million bpd for Iraq, OPEC said today in its Monthly Oil Market Report. Production from Iran fell ahead […]
Three New Power Plants for Iraq
By John Lee. An international consortium has received local government approval to build three new power stations in central and southern Iraq, and is now waiting on approval from the Central Government in Baghdad. They will be built by a consortium of led by Semco Maritime of Denmark, AMH Group of the United Kingdom, and […]
Weekly Security Update for 11th July 2012
By Gary Sandiford, Olive Group's Dubai-based assessments manager. Olive Group is a leading provider of security and technology solutions and has operated continuously in Iraq since 2003. Overview Olive Groups Iraq statistics are drawn from multiple sources, including media reporting and direct liaison with in country assets. Included within the statistics are a minority sub-set […]
Afren Takeover Speculation
By John Lee. Shares in Afren, the U.K.-based oil and gas company with operations in Iraqi Kurdistan, gave up some of their recent gains on Wednesday, but were still nearly 10% up on Monday's intra-day low on speculation of a takeover offer. According to This is Money, rumours were rife that Italy's ENI, and Exxon […]
US Embassy Denies It Reports on Wealth of Iraqi Political Leaders
By John Lee. A spokesman for the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Michael McClellan, has denied recent reports in the Iraqi media that the U.S. Embassy has prepared a report on the wealth of Iraq's political leaders. “Embassy officials meet regularly with Iraqi leaders across the political spectrum and engage them on a wide range of […]
Trade Bank of Iraq issues Visa Gold Card
By John Lee. The Trade Bank of Iraq (TBI) has issued a Visa Debit Gold Card for dollar-denominated accounts currency, according to a statement from the bank, reported by AKnews. The statement quoted director general of the bank, Hamdiya al-Jaff [Hamdiya Al-Jaf, Hamida al-Jaf], as saying: "The issuance of such cards encourage citizens to deal […]
UK Foreign Sec, Iraqi Foreign Min, Meet in London
By John Lee. UK Foreign Secretary William Hague met Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari in London on 10 July. After the meeting they issued the following statement: Following yesterday’s re-opening of the Iraqi embassy in London which marks another important step in Iraq’s re-emergence on to the international stage; we reinforced today our commitment to […]
IWPR Iraq Boosts Women's Media Skills
By Farah Ali. 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 Fourteen Iraqi women have undergone specialised IWPR training in […]
Most Iraqi Banks Meet New Capital Requirements
By John Lee. Most of Iraq's 34 private banks have met the central bank's 30th June deadline to reach the 150 billion Iraqi dinar ($128.8 million) capital requirement, reports Reuters.
Minister Zebari Re-Opens Iraqi Embassy to London
By John Lee. Iraq's Foreign Minister Hoshiar Zebari has re-opened the Iraqi Embassy in London on Tuesday following renovations. He raised the Iraqi flag and cut the ribbon at a ceremony accompanied by Alistair Burt, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Minister of State for British Near Eastern Affairs, Baroness Emma […]