Baker Hughes Rig Survey Includes Iraq for First Time
By John Lee. Baker Hughes has included Iraq in its international survey of rotary drilling rigs for the first time since 1990. The Baker Hughes Rig Counts are an important business barometer for the drilling industry and its suppliers. When drilling rigs are active they consume products and services produced by the oil service industry. […]
UK Men Charged with Selling Fake Bomb Detectors to Iraq
By John Lee. British Police have charged six people over the sale of allegedly fake bomb detection equipment to foreign countries, including Iraq. James McCormick, 55, who has been charged with six counts of fraud, was the director of British-based security company ATSC that sold explosive-detecting devices, according to Reuters. The ATSC website says its […]
Iraq Business News is Gold Media Partner for Iraq Finance 2012
Iraq Finance 2012 is the first major international conference and exhibition on banking and financial institutions in Iraq, and Iraq Business News is delighted to be Gold Media Partner for the event. This landmark event is supported by all senior decision-makers in banking / finance and is aimed at regenerating Iraq's financial sector, both public […]
Iraqi Foreign Minister Praises Work of IBBC
Iraq’s Foreign Minister Hoshayar Zebari [Hoshyar Zebari] (pictured) thas been praising the Iraq British Business Council (IBBC) for what he called: “its remarkable work.” He was speaking at a meeting in the House of Lords where he was guest of honour. Mr Zebari told the All Party Political Group, Foreign Affairs that Britain lagged far […]
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 […]