US Helps Iraq Build Safe and Efficient Rail System
Iraq’s railways are now safer and more efficient as a result of two projects funded with $60 million by the United States. The successful completion of the Communication Based Train Control (CBTC) system and Digital Microwave Radio Communication Network (DMRCN) will help Iraq to move goods, people, and raw materials quickly about the country. They […]
Books for the Beach
As Reidar Visser reported this week, the Iraqi parliament is taking a six-week break, not re-assembling until 20th November. How they spend their time will vary, of course, and I'm sure that some will be much busier than others. But for those who will be taking the opportunity for some constructive leisure time, a good […]
Shahristani Retains Hard Line on KRG Oil Contracts
Iraq's deputy prime minister has said that oil contracts signed by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) must be rewritten, and that recent government payments to international producers in the region in no way validate the contracts, according to a report from Reuters. "The contracts as they stand will have to be presented to the government […]
Iraq Controls Own Airspace for First Time Since 2003
Iraq took responsibility for all of its airspace this month for the first time since the 2003 US-led invasion, according to AFP. The US Air Force (USAF) has transferred management of the Baghdad/Balad Airspace sector to the Iraq Civil Aviation Authority (ICAA). Iraq's air traffic controllers are now directing the movement of all aircraft within […]
Sulaimaniya to Improve Food Security with New Silos
The governorate of Sulaimaniya is planning to build five grain silos by the end of 2012, according to Hama-Hussein Hama-Saeed, deputy general director at the Kurdistan trade ministry. AKnews reports that the silos, worth $116 million (138 billion Iraqi dinars), will have a capacity of 240,000 tons of grain. "With these silos, we'll be able […]
The Iraqi Parliament Closes Down
The following article was published by Reidar Visser, an historian of Iraq educated at the University of Oxford and currently based at the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs. It is reproduced here with the author’s permission. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. […]
Iraq and Turkey to Open New Border Crossings
Turkey and Iraq have agreed to open two new border crossings to boost trade and accommodate increasing traffic between the two neighbors, according to a report from Today’s Zaman. The issue was discussed during a two-day visit by Iraqi Foreign Affairs Minister Hoshyar Zebari to Ankara on Wednesday. The formal agreement for the opening of […]
2 of the 3 Mobile Telcos Select Banks for IPO
Asiacell has selected HSBC and Morgan Stanley to manage its initial public offering (IPO) on the Iraqi bourse, according to Bloomberg. Chief Executive Officer Diar Ahmed told the news agency that the company will offer 25 percent of its shares, but did not specify when. The company, which is an affiliate of Qatar Telecom, is […]
Basra Plans Fifth Floating Oil Pier
The Director General of the South Oil Company said on Wednesday that they plan to build a fifth floating oil pier when the four currently under construction are completed. Aswat al-Iraq reports that the four piers are expected to be finished by late-2013 or early-2014. The first of these piers will start exporting oil at […]
Weekly Security Update for 12th October 2011
Levels of violence fell slightly in Iraq over the past week, with incidents concentrated in Baghdad, Mosul, and an arc stretching from Taji in Salah ad-Din province to Ba’qubah in Diyala province. Ta’mim province also saw a scattering of incidents while there was at least one successful attack and one prevented in Basrah province. The […]
State Department to Employ 16,000 in Iraq
The U.S. State Department plans to deploy 16,000 civilian employees in Iraq, the Washington Post reports. And while the U.S. military is supposed to be out of Iraq by the end of the year, the two governments are trying to negotiate an agreement for a small training force to remain. But those forces will be […]
Halfaya Output to Rise in 2012
Output at Iraq’s Halfaya oilfield will rise to 70,000 barrels a day in 2012 with the drilling of 48 wells, As Sabah newspaper said on Tuesday. Bloomberg reports that two projects valued at a total of $187 million will be built next year at the oilfield. The projects include a crude oil processing facility with […]