Iraq to Call for Major Investment in Refineries
Dr Ahmed al Shamma, Deputy Minister of Oil, to launch massive investment in refineries at the Iraq Mining conference on 7-8 September 2011. Dr al Shamma will present: A review of present refineries and operating capacities and details of major projects to rehabilitate and upgrade these refineries. A review of planned grass roots refineries to […]
Iranian Firm to Invest Heavily in Wassit
Azzaman reports that the Iran Foreign Investment Company (IFIC) is willing to invest heavily in a number of projects in the southern Iraqi province of Wassit, and is prepared to accept deferred payment for its acvities. The head of the province’s information office, Majid al-Atabi, said the company’s offer was tempting because Wassit did not […]
Maersk Oil Buys 20% of HKN Energy
Maersk Oil, a fully-owned subsidiary of the A.P. Moller – Maersk Group, has acquired a 20% shareholding in HKN Energy Ltd., a subsidiary of U.S.-based Hillwood International Energy, whose sole asset is a licence in Kurdistan Region. The acquisition is a step into the prolific but as yet underdeveloped area of Kurdistan in oil output […]
Al-Shahristani to Answer Questions on Fraudulent Electricity Deals
Hussein al-Shahristani (pictured), Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister, will be summoned to parliament after the Eid al-Fitr holiday to answer questions about two fraudulent ministry of electricity contracts worth more than $1.7 billion, according to AKnews. A member of the parliamentary commission set up to investigate the case, Uday Awwad, told the agency that MPs signatures have […]
$30-$60 Billion Wasted in Iraq, Afghan Contracts
The final report of the congressionally chartered US Commission on Wartime Contracting in Iraq and Afghanistan says at least $31 billion has been lost to contract waste and fraud, and that major reforms are required. Commission reform objectives include improving federal planning for use of contracts, strengthening contract management and oversight, expanding competition, improving interagency […]
Iraq Loses $22m due to "Extra" Eid Holidays
An Iraqi economist says the country will lose $22 million because of "extra" Eid al-Fitr holidays that the Iraqi government announced. Eid al-Fitr, which follows the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, is usually three days, however, AKnews reports that the Iraqi government last week extended the holidays to six day, to accommodate differences between the […]
New Iraqi Dinar to be Harder to Counterfeit
According to reports from Al-Sabaah, the Central Bank of Iraq is planning to make its new currency forgery-proof. Central Bank Governor Sinan al-Shabibi claims that the new currency's attributes will make it 'difficult' to falsify, and says that the project to delete the three zeros, if implemented, will enhance the value of the Iraqi dinar […]
Iraq and Libya (II)
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. […]
KBR Wins 3-Year UK Govt Deal in Iraq
KBR (NYSE: KBR) has announced that it has been selected by the UK’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) to provide life support, vehicle maintenance and healthcare services across Baghdad, Basra and Erbil in Iraq, and Kabul and Lashkar Gah in Afghanistan. This builds on KBR’s existing relationship with FCO delivering services in challenging environments. The […]
Citadel Capital Announces Iraq Refinery Deal
Citadel Capital reports that it has concluded a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Petroleum Ministry of Iraq to build a 150,000-barrel-of-oil-per-day (BOPD) complex petroleum refinery in Iraq. Under the terms of the MOU, the Ministry of Petroleum would guarantee the refinery its feedstock and purchase the refined products under a 25-year off-take agreement at […]
Eight New Power Stations Ready to Generate
The Iraqi Electricity Ministry announced on Monday that eight small diesel-powered electricity generators have been completed and are ready to start producing a total of 240 MW of power. Ministry spokesman Musab al-Mudarres told AKnews that the stations are First Northern Baghdad, Jadiriya, First Qurna, Second Qurna, al-Farabi, Falluja, Ramadi, and Balad. Each of them […]
16 Italian Companies to Enter Iraq for Housing
The Iraqi Council of Ministers has licensed 16 Italian companies to invest in housing projects in Iraq, according to AKnews. Salam al-Qurayshi, an advisor for the Council, told the agency that the companies will construct more than 12,000 houses for government employees in six provinces: Babel, Basra, Dhi Qar, Karbala, Muthanna and Maysan [Missan]. The […]