Viking Hellas to Boost Iraqi Air Services
Greek charter carrier Viking Hellas has teamed up with a consortium of German and Iraqi investors to launch a new joint venture in Iraq called Viking Middle East. Viking Hellas already operates a number of services between its Athens base and destinations in Iraq, and according to the report from Flight Global is planning to […]
Iraq Allocates $100m to Buy 9 Ships
Iraq has allocated $100m [117 billion Iraqi dinars] for the purchase of nine ships, said a source at the state-run Maritime Transport Company. According to Azzaman, the source said the ships will be mainly used for the import of foodstuffs to the country. The ships will have a capacity of 15,000 to 20,000 tons each, […]
Cleric’s Return Signals Uncertainty for Iraq
By Ranj Alaaldin, a Middle East political and security risk analyst based at the London School of Economics and Political Science. He visits the Middle East regularly and as part of his recent work on Iraq has visited the country on a number of fact-finding missions. Foreign Policy magazine recently listed him among its 100 […]
Iraq to Spend $13bn on US Arms
The deputy Iraqi defense minister said Iraq will purchase $13bn (15 trillion Iraqi dinars) of arms from the US between now and 2013. Speaking to AKnews on Friday, Mohammed Askari said the armaments include warplanes, tanks, armored vehicles, helicopters, naval ships and ammunition. The official said the contract is currently underway, with some deliveries already […]
Fugro to Enter Iraqi Oil & Gas Industry
Bloomberg reports that Fugro, the world’s largest surveyor of deepwater oil fields, is about to enter the Iraqi oil and gas business as the oil majors are stepping up their exploration and production in the country. “The security situation is improving,” Chief Executive Officer Klaas Wester said in an interview in Amsterdam on Friday. “We’re […]
200,000 Police to be Recruited in Baghdad
The deputy Iraqi interior minister said the Iraqi Council of Ministers has agreed to recruit 200,000 policemen and interior ministry staff to increase security in Baghdad province. Hussein Kamal told AKnews that the new force will be deployed in Baghdad upon the ratification of the Iraqi general budget. The force will approximately double the number […]
Automobile Plant in Kurdistan Under Discussion
Kurdistan Region’s minister of transportation and communication has said Thursday a number of businessmen are in serious talks to build an automobile manufacturing plant in the Region, according to a report from AKnews. Anwar Jabali [Anwar Jabali Sabo] (pictured) did not disclose the names of the people involved, however he stressed the Region has “promising” […]
Call to Exploit Border Oil Field Between Iraq and Jordan
The Chairman of Anbar Province’s Council has called on the Iraqi government on Saturday to invest in al-Risha oil field with, shared between Iraq and Jordan, and to lay down clear steps to exploit the field. “We call on the Iraqi government and the Oil Ministry to expoit al-Risha Oil Field on the Iraqi side […]
New Fraud Suit Re Iraq Military Contracts
Bloomberg reports that U.S. prosecutors have filed a civil suit against Kuwaiti logistics company Agility, accusing it of defrauding the government over food contracts to the U.S. military in the Middle East worth $9.8 billion. Agility was the largest supplier to the U.S. Army in the Middle East during the war in Iraq and a […]
Iraq "Able to Satisy its Food Needs"
Iraq’s Ambassador to the UN Food & Agriculture Organization (FAO), Hassan al-Janaby, has stated in Rome on Saturday that the prices of foodstuffs were increasing and all reports are indicating that the world is facing a very embarrasing situation, threatening to unleash a major hunger wave, but he said Iraq was able to satisfy the […]
ISX ready for lift-off
The Iraq Stock Exchange ended the year with a bang last month, with Rabee Securities’ RSISX index rising 8.8% in the final two weeks of trading. Having been down as much as 10% year-to-date in early October, this index actually managed to close 2010 up 1.7%. Volume in the final week rose above IQD 10 […]
Are New Import Licences Strangling Iraqi Trade?
Iraq Business News is receiving reports of serious disruption to commerce in Iraq caused by new requirements for import licences introduced at the start of the year. According to the newspaper al Sabaah, the new requirements have led to major delays and backlogs of traffic at border crossings and ports, and as a result the […]