Tag Archives | Kurdistan News

The latest news from Kurdistan – security updates, reconstruction and more – brought to you by Iraq Business News.

Hungary to Establish Diplomatic Presence in Erbil

The new Hungarian Ambassador to Iraq, Mr. Tibor Tamari, visited the Kurdistan Region this week to meet with senior officials as following his appointment. Minister Falah Mustafa, Head of KRG Department of Foreign Relations, received the new ambassador, who has already presented his credentials to Baghdad, to discuss Hungarian engagement in Kurdistan on. Minister Mustafa […]

Iraqi Kurds Join Pro-Erdogan Protests

The square facing the Turkish consulate in the city of Erbil, the largest city in Iraq's Kurdistan region, had been experiencing over the past years demonstrations condemning the policies of the Turkish government headed by Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Things, however, have changed, and the square has begun seeing demonstrations in which participants hold photos of […]

EU High Rep. Ashton visits Kurdistan Region

The Kurdistan Region’s President and Prime Minister on Monday in Erbil met with the European Union’s foreign affairs chief, Catherine Ashton, on her first visit to the Region. The EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice President of the European Commission visited Erbil to discuss Iraq’s currently instability and the Kurdistan […]

KRG to Export Oil by New Pipeline ‘Very Soon’

By John Lee. Ashti Hawrami (pictured), the Natural Resources Minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government, said on Wednesday that Iraqi Kurdistan will start exporting crude oil by pipeline "very soon" after the completion of a new link to the Turkish border by the end of September. Bloomberg quotes the minister as saying that the pipeline to […]

KRG Struggles to Cope with Syrian Refugees

By Abdel Hamid Zebari for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. With the continuously deteriorating security and political situation in Syria, and the growing fighting between government and opposition forces, many Syrian citizens — particularly Syria's Kurds — have been forced […]

Barzani, McGurk Discuss Iraq, Syria

President Masoud Barzani met with US State Department senior advisor Brett McGurk to discuss the recent political developments in Iraq and in the wider region. Mr. McGurk lauded the recent rapprochement between the Erbil and Baghdad, including the visit to Erbil by Prime Minister Maliki and his meeting with President Barzani. He expressed US government’s […]

Chevron Signs 3rd KRG Oil Deal

By John Lee. France24 reports that Chevron has signed another oil exploration deal in Iraqi Kurdistan. The contract, under which Chevron will acquire an interest in and operatorship of the Qara Dagh block production sharing contract, is the company's third in the autonomous region; it was previously barred from working in non-Kurdish parts of the country […]

1 Million bpd Oil by 2015 – and More Earthquakes?

By Hiwa Barznjy. This article was originally published by Niqash. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Iraqi Kurdistan has a sea of oil and politicians are eager to exploit the resource. But one expert says oil extraction must be more carefully managed. […]

Self-Immolation Among Iraqi Kurdish Women

By Brenda Stoter for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Berma, 26, lies in a white hospital bed in the female burn unit in Erbil. Her body lies in an uncomfortable position — because her legs are not allowed to touch […]

Parties Agree On Controversial Information Law

By Abdel Hamid Zebari for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. After three years of negotiations on the law regarding the right to information in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, the ruling bloc, comprised of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and […]

Oil Discovery at Tawke Licence

By John Lee. DNO International announced today that its deep Tawke-17 well tested 1,500 barrels a day of 26-28 degree API crude oil from an Upper Jurassic reservoir underlying the Tawke field in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Separately, the Tawke-20 well, the Company's first horizontal well in the Tawke field, has flowed an average […]

Afren Chairman Updates on Operations

By John Lee. At today's AGM of Afren, which has operations (pictured) at Barda Rash in Kurdistan, the Chairman Egbert Imomoh opened the meeting with the following statement: Our vision to be the leading independent upstream Exploration and Production (E&P) Company in each of the areas we operate is underpinned by a clear and consistent […]