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By John Lee.
Iran’s gas and electricity exports to Iraq are reportedy expected to reach $5 billion by the end of the current Iranian calendar year, which ends on March 21, 2020.
Mehr news agency quotes the Secretary General of Iran-Iraq Joint Chamber, Seyed Hamid Hosseini, as saying that if Iraq agrees it is possible for Iran to barter the necessary goods in return for the gas and electricity, the Central Bank of Iraq (CBI) “should cooperate in this regard“.
(Source: Tehran Times)
By Mustafa Saadoun for Al Monitor. Any opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News.
US grants Iraq reprieve to continue buying Iranian gas
The United States has decided to grant Iraq a third 90-day sanctions waiver so it can continue to purchase gas from its sole provider, Iran, giving Baghdad some much-needed breathing room.
On May 22 in Baghdad, Joey Hood, US chargé d’affaires in Iraq, stressed to reporters that the waivers will not continue indefinitely, so the United States is working with Iraq to reduce its dependence on Iran.
Washington has exempted Baghdad from some of its unilateral sanctions against Tehran, allowing Iraq to continue importing energy from Iran, according to the US envoy to Baghdad.
Baghdad can now buy energy from Iran, US charge d’affaires Joey Hood told reporters on Wednesday, Iran’s Press TV reported.
The waiver will allow Iraq to continue buying gas and electricity from Iran.
The administration of US President Donald Trump said in March it was extending a 90-day waiver for the second time to let Iraq continue energy imports from Iran.
The US envoy did not explain whether he was referring to the same waiver Washington gave Baghdad in March or he was declaring the issuance of new exemptions.
Gas imports from Iran generate as much as 45 percent of Iraq’s 14,000 megawatts of electricity consumed daily. Iran transmits another 1,000 megawatts directly, making itself an indispensable energy source for its Arab neighbor.
Iraq and Iran share a 1,400-kilometer-long border. For their run-of-the-mill maintenance, Iraqis depend on Iranian companies for many things from food to machinery, electricity, natural gas, fruits and vegetables.
(Source: Tasnim, under Creative Commons licence)
By John Lee.
Oil Minister Thamer Ghadhban (pictured) has reportedly said on Thursday that Iraq has contingency plans in place to cope with any stoppage of Iranian gas imports.
His comments come as the US increases sanctions pressure on Iran.
According to Reuters, Ghadhban added that he hopes no such disruption will take place.
(Source: Reuters)
An Iranian official said the exports of natural gas to Iraq are growing steadily and are expected to hit 40 million cubic meters a day in summer.
Managing director of the Iranian Gas Engineering and Development Company (IGEDC) Hassan Montazer Torbati told Tasnim that Iran’s gas exports to Iraq are constantly increasing and nearing a ceiling set on the contract between the two neighbors.
He noted that the exports will be rising as the hot season is looming with a surge in Iraq’s electricity consumption, adding that the daily export is expected to hit 40 million cubic meters.
Baghdad and Basra are the main export destinations of Iranian natural gas, the official added.
On a gas deal with Turkey, Montazer Torbati said Tehran and Ankara are planned to enter negotiations to extend the gas export contract during the last five years of the deal, adding that serious talks to renew the contract will kick off next year.
In June 2017, Iran started to export natural gas to Iraq after years of negotiations and settlement of financial problems.
Tehran and Baghdad had signed a deal on the exports of natural gas from the giant South Pars Gas Field in 2013.
Under the deal, the Iranian gas is delivered to Sadr, Baghdad and al-Mansouryah power plants in Iraq through a 270-kilometer pipeline.
Last month, Iraq’s Ministry of Electricity said the Arab country’s gas imports from Iran are planned to rise by 13 percent by January 2020.
(Source: Tasnim, under Creative Commons licence)
From Al Jazeera. Any opinions expressed are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News.
There is a fight over energy in Iraq between the US and Iran. Iraq relies on Iranian gas for nearly half of its energy – gas that is now subject to US sanctions on Iran.
The Iraqi government originally obtained a 45-day sanctions waiver from the US, but that waiver is set to expire next week.
Iraq is particularly sensitive to the issue after protests against electricity cuts rocked Basra earlier in the year and Iraq’s new government is treading a thin line trying to keep both the US and Iran happy, and its people satisfied.
Al Jazeera’s Charlotte Bellis reports:
By John Lee.
Gas exports from Iran to Iraq have reportedly been interrupted as authorities in Iran repair pipeline damage caused during a recent earthquake.
The gas is used for electricity generation, with the cut reducing available power by 2,500 megawatts (MW).
Supplies are expected to be restored over the coming days.
(Sources: Iraq Oil Report, Reuters)
(Picture: Iran-Iraq gas pipeline during construction. Picture credit: Shana)
Iraq is negotiating with the U.S. for exemptions from the impending snap-back of sanctions against Iran, arguing that it could not cut consumption of Iranian electricity and natural gas immediately without suffering serious economic harm and social instability.
An Iraqi delegation was in Washington last week seeking a waiver for its cross-border trade, meeting with senior officials in the State Department, Treasury Department, and National Security Council, according to multiple officials familiar with the talks.
More details here from Iraq Oil Report (subscription required)
(Source: Iraq Oil Report)
A top Iranian energy official unveiled plans for a rise in natural gas exports to neighboring Iraq next year.
In an interview with Tasnim on Saturday, Managing Director of the National Iranian Gas Company (NIGC) Hamid Reza Araqi said the country’s exports of natural gas to Iraq will increase during the spring and summer of 2018.
Iran’s gas exports to Iraq, which now stand at 14 million cubic meters a day, are planned to reach the maximum capacity within three years, he added.
On June 22, at the beginning of summer, Iran started to export natural gas to Iraq after years of negotiations and settlement of financial problems.
Iran’s daily gas exports to Iraq are to reach 35 million cubic meters at the final stage.
Tehran and Baghdad signed a deal on the exports of natural gas from the giant South Pars Gas Field in 2013.
Under the deal, the Iranian gas is delivered to Sadr, Baghdad and al-Mansouryah power plants in Iraq through a 270-kilometer pipeline.
(Source: Tasnim, under Creative Commons licence)