Iraqi Parliament Declares Itself Above the Constitution
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. The opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. […]
You Can't do Iraq on the Cheap
Hundreds of Iraqis protested against the government on Monday in a “Day of Regret” on the anniversary of the election that resulted in a second term for Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. And in a move that has drawn criticism from many quarters, the security forces have shut down the offices of two small parties that […]
Heritage Oil Jumps on Bid Rumours
Shares in oil explorer Heritage Oil (LSE: HOIL) rose more than 6% to 304.9p on Wednesday following rumours of a bid for the company or its assets. The increase came despite British gas firm BG Group (LSE: BG) denying that it was interested in the company. "We do not comment on market rumours or speculation […]
Iraq to Issue Tender for New $388m Power Plant
Iraq is preparing to issue a tender for a $388.5 million power plant, according to a report from Bloomberg. Ali Al-Dabbagh, a spokesman for the government, said on Tuesday that the Council of Ministers approved the plan to issue a tender for the plant in the Nineveh province, north of Baghdad. The plant should be […]
DNO Considers $300m Bond Issue
DNO International, the Norway-based oil exploration and production company with operations in Iraqi Kurdistan, has reported that it is considering a senior unsecured bond issue of USD 200-300 million, maturing in 2016. The purpose of the loan is refinancing and general corporate purposes. Pareto Securities AS, ABG Sundal Collier ASA and Fearnley Fonds ASA have […]
Iraq Needs 5,800 New Schools
The Education Ministry said on Wednesday that Iraq needs 5,800 schools if it is to overcome the crisis of lack of school buildings. Walid Hasan, the spokesman of the ministry, told AKnews that the Education Minister Mohammad Tamim promised to build 200 schools this year, based on the money allocated for the Ministry, pointing out […]
Security Forces Foil New Attack on Baiji Refinery
Associated Press quotes an Iraqi official as saying that security forces have foiled a new attack against the country's largest oil refinery. Salahaddin provincial spokesman Mohammed al–Assi said a bomb was found inside the Beiji [Baiji, Bayji] refinery earlier this week but it was successfully dismantled. It had been placed inside a storage tank. The […]
Bomb Shuts Kirkuk-Ceyhan Pipeline
A bomb attack in the northern province of Nineveh halted oil flow through the Iraq-Turkey pipeline, which carries a quarter of Iraq's crude exports, a spokesman for Iraq's oil ministry said on Wednesday. Reuters, quoting Oil Ministry spokesman Asim Jihad, reported that the attack occurred on Tuesday night, but oil flow is expected to resume […]
Weekly Security Update for 9th March 2011
Overview Levels of violence fell in Iraq over the past week. This is the first time this has occurred so far this year. Protests were less violent than the preceding week while there was a drop in the number of terrorist attacks in all parts of the country except the capital. The contested city of […]
Iraqi Oil Workers Cheapest in the World
Local oil and gas workers in Iraq receive an average salary of nearly $22,000 per annum, the lowest in the sector worldwide. Their foreign counterparts working in Iraq receive $94,800, according to a report from recruitment group Hays Oil & Gas. Globally, oil and gas industry workers make an average of nearly $76,000 per year, […]
Iraq May Legislate on Currency Exchange
According to a report from AKnews, a number of bankers in Baghdad have demanded that the Iraqi parliament legislates to regulate and protect their businesses from market changes because of the sudden decisions taken by the Iraqi government. Ali Abdul-Zahra, owner of an foreign exchange bureau, told AKnews that banking in Iraq is still precarious […]
Iraqi Oil Research Centre Needs $15m
The Iraqi Ministry of Oil's Center for Research and Development has said that it needs 15 million dollars [18 billion Iraqi dinars] in order to develop its work and train its people, stressing that a number of important oil companies working in Iraq are reluctant to deal with the center as it currently stands. The […]