Arabs Are Top Investors in Kurdistan
Investors from Arab countries have led other foreign investors in the Kurdistan Region in the last two years with nearly $2.7 billion (3.2 trillion Iraqi dinars) of investment in various sectors of the Region’s economy, a senior official of the Kurdistan Investment Board (KIB) told AKnews. “Four Arab countries -- Kuwait, Lebanon, Egypt and Jordan […]
New Patent Center for University Students
The Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research has opened a centre for students who have been awarded patents, according to the head of the ministry’s media department. "An innovation and excellence center for University students was opened in Baghdad and it caters to the outstanding and creative students that won patents and awards," Siham […]
Damac's $15bn Project in Erbil Cancelled
A 55 billion U.A.E. dirham ($15 billion) property development that was to have been built in Iraqi Kurdistan by Dubai-based developer Damac Properties has been cancelled, reports Abu Dhabi-based newspaper The National on Thursday. The Tarin Hills project was to be a mixed-use development including luxury villas, two five-star hotels, a theme park, golf course, […]
Maliki Urges Iranian Companies to Invest in Iraq
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki called on Iranian companies to contribute in the reconstruction operations in Iraq, according to a statement of his office. “This came during al-Maliki’s meeting with Iranian Ambassador to Baghdad, Hussein Qomi [Hassan Kazemi Qomi] , at the end of his term in the country,” said the statement received by Aswat […]
Australian Ambassador, Najaf Governor Discuss Investment Cooperation
The Australian Ambassador to Baghdad, Robert Tyson, paid a visit to Najaf to foster economic, cultural and scientific relations, Najaf's governor said this week. Adnan al-Zarfi said he received the Australian ambassador on Wednesday (July 21), with whom he dicussed ways of boosting economic, scientific and cultural relations between the local government in Najaf and […]
Banks’ bonus issues a disappointment so far
It’s always been a bit of a mystery why anyone should care about bonus share issues. Since a company’s retained earnings are already owned by the shareholders, you would think that converting these earnings into shares shouldn’t have any effect on an investor’s returns. Following a bonus, the share price should logically fall by an […]
Moody’s Boosts Petronas Rating on Iraq Exposure
Energy Risk reports that Moody's has raised its rating of Malaysian state-owned Petronas's A1 senior unsecured debt from negative to stable, despite the group's riskier business profile following a major acquisition of a large oil field in Iraq. "We expect the company's $20 billion capital expenditure for the Iraqi fields to be spread out over […]
Oil Espionage: Laptops Stolen
An official security source in Iraqi Oil Intelligence said on Tuesday that four laptop computers were stolen from the legal department of the South Oil Company and were smuggled into Kuwait, and that the company didn’t take any legal action against those involved. According to the report from AK News, the source, who preferred anonymity, […]
New Investment Opportunities in Dhi Qar
The head of the investment and strategy committee of Dhi Qar provincial council, Ahmad Taha, announced that a new round of investment licenses will be awarded soon to foreign and Arab firms. The licensing round will include waste recycling, environment, electricity and gas stations projects. Al SumariaTV also reported that "oil refineries will be established […]
New Electricity Projects Throughout Iraq
The Iraqi Industry Ministry has ordered its factories to work on generating electricity required for production, to minimize the load on the national electricity network. The ministry noted that power shortage is causing losses to its factories. “The ministry has issued contracts to purchase large generators for this purpose,” the ministry said in a press […]
Turkish Companies' Assets in Kurdistan Exceed US$ 600 Million
A source from Kurdistan Investment Board declared that the Turkish companies' assets in Kurdistan Region amount to US$ 621 million. Confirming the figure, Haydar Mustafa, the Director General of Investigation & Information in the Board, told AKnews on Wednesday that although there are many Turkish companies operating in the Region the majority of them are […]
Bureaucracy Delays Investment - NIC
"Investment in Iraq is weakened due to delays in issuing investment licences for projects, and due to the bureaucracy that is involved; the Iraqi economy needs to change from a centralized economy to a free one", said Kamel al-Zaidi, a member of the Investment committee, on Tuesday. The process is too cumbersome and is not […]