Kuwaiti-Funded School Opens in Karbala
AKnews reports that a primary school funded by a Kuwaiti grant of more than $2 million [2.4 billion Iraqi dinars] was opened in Karbala on Wednesday. Opening the school, the undersecretary of the education ministry said that Iraq needs more than 5,000 schools to be opened during the next year to cope with the rising […]
Chinese Company to Build $79m Najaf Power Station
Najaf Provincial Council has made a preliminary agreement with a Chinese company for it to build a power station, the head of the energy committee in Najaf told AKnews. He said the $79 million [95 billion Iraqi dinars] oil-fired station will have a capacity of 100 megawatts. According to AKnews, the agreement came after the […]
Iraq's non-Oil Trade with Iran Reaches $4bn
The Iraqi Trade Ministry said Wednesday that the value of trade with Iran, discounting oil activities, has hit $4 billion [4.8 trillion Iraqi dinars] this year so far, according to a report from AKnews. The Director General of Foreign Economic Relations at the ministry, Hashem Hatem, told the agency that the Ministry is seeking to […]
Sweet Deals on 18 Govt Factories
In an effort to rebuild its ailing industrial sector, Iraq has relaunched a tender to rehabilitate 18 of its idle factories, for the second time this year, after failing to attract enough interest from foreign investors. Reuters quotes Abdul-Ghani Fakhri, director general of the investment department at the Ministry of Industry and Minerals, as saying […]
3,000MW Power Station Planned for Basra
Basra province is planning to build a 3000-megawatt power generation station in a coastal area overlooking the Gulf, Basra's governor's adviser announced on Wednesday. Central regulations prevent the local provinces from contracting for power generation stations more than 30 megawatts, but the governor has called on the central government to give permission to enter direct […]
Will Shell Over-charge for Iraqi Gas?
AKnews reports that Shell and Mitsubishi’s giant gas venture in Basra has been criticised for planning to sell gas to fuel-starved Iraqi power plants at too high a price. The fuel will be sold at $4.38 per million British thermal units (mbtu), less than a third of the $15/mmbtu that is charged in parts of […]
Contract Signed with Chinese Co. to Assemble Cars
Iraq’s state-owned General Company for Car Manufacturing, which belongs to the Ministry of Industry & Minerals, has signed a contract with the Chinese Proton Company, to assemble and market 1,000 cars annually. According to the report from Aswat al-Iraq, the Iskandariya-based company has also signed a contract with the Teachers Syndicate to supply teachers with […]
Turkish Company Proposes High-Rise Apartments in Karbala
The Chairman of Karbala's Provincial Council has announced that a Turkish company proposed building high-rise housing blocks to help tackle the housing crisis in the province. Mohammed al-Mussawi told Aswat al-Iraq that the company specialises in the construction of hotels and housing units. He said the Investment Commission held talks with a Turkish company to […]
Weekly Security Update for 11th August 2011
Levels of violence neither escalated nor decreased significantly in Iraq over the past week, although thankfully conditions are currently quieter than earlier in the summer. Across the country there were no reported kidnappings or suicide bombings, which is a welcome change from normality. It is likely that militants are lying low at present, partly because […]
Is Iraq a Third-World Country?
The big news this week is the sacking of the Iraqi electricity minister, following the revelation that two recently-announced power generation contracts were, let's say, 'questionable'. While the idea that a government and civil service can be fooled by a website and a company presentation may seem far-fetched, bear in mind that in Iraq the […]
Iraq's 'Dodgy' Power Generation Deals
Reuters reports that Iraq’s government has admitted to being duped when it signed multi-billion dollar power plant contracts with foreign companies that it later discovered were either bogus or had lied about their financial status. The announcement is embarrassing for Nouri al-Maliki’s government as it tries to lure foreign investors into Iraq. “These contracts damaged […]
Warka Assets Seized in ‘Subcarpet’ Fight
Winston Churchill once likened observing Soviet politics to “watching two dogs fighting under a carpet.” All you can say for sure is that something’s going on. The latest news on Warka Bank has exactly this 'subcarpet' quality. The ISC has ordered Warka’s brokerage subsidiary to stop its operations in the market effective July 26 following […]