Half a Million Plots of Land allocated for Housing
By John Lee. Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi has confirmed that more than half a million plots of land have been allocated for three million citizens under the "Dari" housing initiative. Applications for the scheme were made via an online process. Addressing the Cabinet, al-Kadhimi said that a plan has been made to provide the sites […]
Dana Gas achieves 50% Gas Production Growth in 3 yrs
Dana Gas and its partner, Crescent Petroleum, have reported record sales gas production from their operations in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI), reaching 452 million cubic feet of gas per day (MMscf/d) at the end of 2021. The production milestone is the culmination of numerous process improvements at the Khor Mor gas plant, including […]
New Arrivals to Iraq must have COVID Vaccination Cert
By John Lee. Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi has chaired a meeting of the Higher Committee for Health and National Safety in Baghdad. The committee decided that all arriving passengers, including Iraqi nationals, must hold a Covid-19 vaccination certificate. It also decided to end the exemption for umrah pilgrims from the requirement to have a Covid-19 […]
CFO of Genel Energy to Step Down
Genel Energy announced on Tuesday that Esa Ikaheimonen (pictured), Chief Financial Officer, has advised the Board of his intention to leave the company on 16 March 2022, following the announcement of the Company's 2021 financial results the day before. In a statement, the company said that a search for a suitable replacement is ongoing and […]
IBBC Zoom Webinar with Professor Frank Gunter
Professor Frank Gunter of Lehigh University in US, and a member of IBBC's advisory council, has updated his celebrated work 'The Political economy of Iraq' after its initial publication 10 years ago. As a constant observer and supporter of Iraq, Frank has a long term and deep insight into the country and is in constant […]
Fitch Rates Iraq's Gulf Commercial Bank 'CCC+'
By John Lee. Fitch Ratings has assigned Gulf Commercial Bank (GCB) a Long-Term Issuer Default Rating (IDR) of 'CCC+'. GCB is a privately-owned bank, headquartered in Baghdad and regulated by the Central Bank of Iraq (CBI). More here. (Source: Fitch Ratings)
EU drops Iraq from List of High-Risk Countries for Money Laundering
By John Lee. The European Union's Ambassador to Iraq has announced that Iraq has been removed from its list of countries deemed to carry a high risk of money laundering. Following a meeting with Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi in Baghdad on Sunday, Ville Varjola tweeted: "Bringing the good news today to HE Prime Minister Mustafa […]
UN Awards Contract for Housing in Anbar
By John Lee. Nudhum Albenaa for Engineering and Technical Consultancy has won a contract with the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) for "Design Consultancy Service for the Rehabilitation of selected Housing Units and Critical Services in Anbar". The contract is valued at $648,000. (Source: UNGM)
IranAir to Fly to Najaf
By John Lee. IranAir will reportedly operate two new daily round-trip flights to Najaf International Airport. According to Iran's Financial Tribune, there will be a morning flight from Tehran's Imam Khomeini International Airport, and afternoon flights from Mashhad. More here. (Source: Financial Tribune)
Halbousi Re-Elected as Speaker
By John Lee. The newly-elected Iraqi parliament has re-elected Mohamed al-Halbousi (pictured) as Speaker for a second term. Mr Halbousi received 200 votes, with his opponent, Mahmood al-Mashhadani, getting just 14. According to Al Jazeera, Parliament now has 30 days to elect the country's new President, who will then ask the largest bloc in parliament […]
Shalamcheh-Basra Railway to be Completed "within 2 Years"
By John Lee. Iran's Minister of Roads and Urban Development, Rostam Qasemi, has said the Shalamcheh-Basra railway project, linking Iraq and Iran, will be completed within two years. He added that a joint venture between the Islamic Republic of Iran Railways and Iraqi Republic Railways (IRR) will be set up in two months. The most […]
PM announces new Development Fund for Najaf
By John Lee. The Iraqi government is working to set up a special fund to contribute to the development of Najaf province. Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi made the announcement following a visit to Najaf on Thursday. He also instructed the Ministries of Construction, Housing, Municipalities and Public Works to find solutions to the problems of […]