Thread: Iraq/Dinar News until 5PM CST May 10,2007

Opening of Modern Mills in Four Provinces

Trade ministry aims opening of 4 modern gigantic mills through the few coming period after carrying out of other 4 mills in the new project including 20 mills by an Iraqi staff completely.

General Director of the Grain Manufacturing State Company Rasheed Bani said that, the ministry currently aims opening of 4 Swiss mills one of them in Najaf province through the next two weeks, other 3 mills in Hilla, Wassit & Muthana provinces through the coming 2 months.

He added that the company carried out establishing and structuring of 4 Italian mills in Saladin, Maisan, Qadisya & Dhiqar provinces but it still un working because of the specifications of supplying enough number of the staff.Mean while, he mentioned that currently the work stopping in the private mills in Anbar, Daiala & Mosul provinces besides other 2 mills in Baghdad because of the bad security situations.

Activating commercial relations between Iraq and the world
05 May 2007 (Iraq Directory)

The Ministry of Commerce said that next month will witness the implementation of a special program to activate trade relations between Iraq and various countries around the world.

A source in the ministry said in a press statement that "this program prepared by the government would include all countries of the world, especially the neighboring countries to develop economic and commercial relations with them as there will be a joint bilateral committees with those States as well as increasing business contracts .. He added: "The coming days will witness the meetings between the Iraqi government delegations and a number of countries of the world, especially the neighboring countries, to discuss joint working papers between Iraq and those countries", stressing: "Iraq's desire to develop all economic and trade relations with the world countries and the relations that were cut during the past years to gain the experience of various countries of the world in developing the economy, supporting the private sector and to taking advantage of investment law which was approved some months ago. It is noteworthy that Iraq is seeking to join the World Trade Organization after obtaining the observer status in the organization in a step considered a prelude to reviving the Iraqi economy and the reconstruction of Iraq.

Emirate companies offered participating with their capital
Iraqi Company of Guarantees tends to double loans

05 May 2007 (Iraq Directory)

Board chairman of the Iraqi Company for Bank Guarantees, Wadee' Alhandal welcomed a request made by the Emirate companies to enter into partnership strategy, and added that it is a step that will activate the program established by the company's board in two meetings in each of Irbil and Amman, which imposed expanding the company's activities in a way that develops its capital and provides opportunities for investment in various productive sectors.

He added that authorities are considering the offers of Emirate companies allowing them to enter into partnership with his company which is scheduled to transfer from a private company to a shareholding company putting its shares for public subscription. He explained that there are other Iraqi banks that will join the company in the current year, to become more representative of the Iraqi banking sector which was undergoing radical transformations to strengthen its role in the process of development and construction.
Alhandal, who also heads the board of "Ashur International Bank for Investment" which is one of the Iraqi banks and partner in the company, said that more than 20 local body applied for loans from the company to implement projects in the areas of industrial, agricultural, service sector, construction and tourism; pointing out that the "Prosperity Project" funded by the "American Agency for International Development", which is specialized in developing Iraqi private sector activity offered a contribution to the company of 500 thousand dollars, explaining that so far $ 1 million in loans were given to about 60 projects varied in size and activity throughout Iraq, and they were granted by Iraqi banks which are sharers in the company.

Double loans

Alhandal expected to double the volume of loans granted by the company to the projects very soon, and added that "Kurdistan region might be the main arena for the company's current activities due to the size of the projects in it, but the restoration of the security situation in the rest of Iraq will contribute greatly to the rapid pace of loans provided by the company".

He explained that the company's capital will double in a high rate, in light of the widening base of the funding needed by the projects to be implemented in different regions of Iraq.

Alhandal pointed out that Kurdistan experience in development deserves contemplation and study since it expresses the region's need for various projects and means of attracting capitals to invest in it; it is an experience rich of results experienced by each visitor to the region.

He explained that all Iraqi banks are applying for opening branches for them in the provinces of Kurdistan, hoping that the local
authorities: "will support such a move, which would contribute positively to activate the economic and banking activity to serve the march of development".

Originally Posted by shotgunsusie

ok, this is dated the 2nd so by sharistanis own words it went to parliament before the conference even started. and the kurds were happy when it went so those other stories since then have been smoke and mirrors.

marsadiraq.com

Iraq prepares to allow foreign firms to exploit its oil and gas riches
Telegraph - [27/02/2007]


Iraqi leaders yesterday approved a draft law opening the country's oil reserves to foreign investors.

The bill, a benchmark laid down by President George W Bush for America's continuing commitment to Iraq, came amid immense pressure from British and American diplomats to enable foreign involvement in what was a nationalised industry under Saddam Hussein.

The oil minister, Hussein Shahristani, promised that oil and gas resources would be "the property of the Iraqi people" and that revenues would be distributed equally among the regions.

advertisement"The exploitation of Iraq's fields will be decided by a process of open bidding, based on model contracts," Mr Shahristani said. "The process will be transparent and open."

Mr Shahristani said the cabinet agreed the draft law unanimously and expected it to "sail through" parliament.
Sunni Muslims, who live in mainly oil-poor areas, had argued that oil and gas profits would be controlled by the ruling Shia majority.

Kurdish leaders, who control half the reserves, stalled the bill last year in an attempt to preserve contracts signed independently with Turkish and Norwegian firms.

Deputy prime minister Barham Salih said the regional goverment's deals would be modified to comply with the new legislation.

Iraq's oil reserves are among the world's largest but production has fallen for decades and is set to tailspin this year. Washington forecasts a drop in output to 1.3 million barrels a day by the end of the year from just under two million in January.

Under the new plans, foreign companies will be encouraged to establish joint ventures with a reconstituted national company.

The son of Iraq's president, Jalal Talabani, joined aides yesterday in denying that his father was gravely ill in Jordan after a heart attack. They said Mr Talabani, 74, was suffering from fatigue.
The vice-president, Adel Abdul Madhi, was slightly hurt in a failed assassination attempt on his convoy in Baghdad.

One has to wonder if Shahristani's comment still holds true. Was all of the wrangling to be done PRIOR to the law being submitted to parliament?
His comment is from 2/27/07.
We will see.

A media city costing $ 400 million in Kurdistan


05 May 2007 (Iraq Directory)

Officials said that Kurdistan government in northern Iraq and a company from Dubai are planning to establish a media city in Erbil costing $ 400 million.

They added that international television networks would come to the region which is relatively stable because the bad security conditions prevented them from opening offices in Baghdad.

According to the agreement of establishing the company of Irbil city media, the regional government will have 60% of the shares, while the Voice of Dubai Company for cinematic and television production will get 40%.

The project will start with a capital of $ 40 million. The company, which will supervise the production of a compound for television studios, hotels, shops and houses, will be opened to shareholders.

Anwar Al-Yasiri, an Iraqi running the Voice of Dubai Company, said that his company and a British company will build the compound in a suburb north of Irbil in two years.

George Mansour, Minister of civil society affairs, said that "the philosophy of the government in supporting such projects is to create jobs for people in the region and support the development of tourism and media sectors". Mansour contributed in establishing the Iraqi Media Network after the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003.

The project will include television broadcast stations and a re-broadcasting center at the capacity of about 120 stations.

Al-Yasiri said, "This project will lay Kurdistan region on the international map when the television stations start broadcasting from the region".

The cost of business in the Kurdish region is much lower than in the neighboring centers such as Dubai, especially after the government had approved laws that liberate foreign investment last year.

Al-Yasiri said, "Even if we were unable initially to provide services to not more than 60 television station, it would be sufficient to make profits, but we expect much greater volume of work".

Currently, there are six space television stations broadcasting from Iraq's Kurdistan, which includes hundreds of foreign companies, including 400 Turkish companies.

Al-Yasiri said that the compound is the first phase of a project that will include Internet and information cities where international universities, technical colleges and training centers will be established.

MTC Q1 profit up 22.5%


02 May 2007 (AME Info FZ LLC)

Kuwait-based Mobile Telecommunications Company has posted a 22.5% increase in Q1 2007 profit to $247m, compared with $202m a year earlier, Reuters reported.

The telco says the number of its customers almost doubled to 29.7m in the quarter. MTC operates in at least 19 countries including Iraq and Bahrain.

Additional $ 2 billion to 2.5 billion for electricity annually05 May 2007 (Iraq Directory)

Iraqi Minister of Electricity, Kareem Hassan, said that Iraq must attract between 2 billion and $ 2.5 billion annually from international aid and investments to be able to rebuild the devastating electricity sector.The Minister is in London to request help from energy companies, including B.B.

The daily shutdowns of electricity in Baghdad have become a usual thing as a result of the damage inflicted on the sector for nearly 30 years due to wars, acts of sabotage and poor maintenance because of the sanctions.

Hassan said, pointing out to sabotage operations, "We build and they destroy every day". He said that he seeks to protect electricity installations in the country through security forces, including the electricity police force which is formed of seven thousand policemen, but he added: "I can not secure the extension of electricity".

He informed journalists: "Many have died because of the lack of electricity. Most hospitals are not working because of this shortage ".

Oil refineries and production have been affected well as by the interruption of electricity supply; Iraq's oil production is currently stable at around two million barrels per day, compared with about three million barrels a day before the invasion of the country led by the United States in March 2003.

In an attempt to improve electricity, it has been agreed to a ten-year plan in 2006 with the assistance of the international community to add about 2000 megawatts to the generating capacity of the current 5000 megawatts.

Hassan said that funding will come from the government budget amounting to 2 billion dollars annually, but the total cost ranges between four billion and $ 4.5 billion, which leave a shortfall of between 2 billion to $ 2.5 billion.

The minister continued, "we urge the donors to implement the commitments they have made in Madrid conference (for rebuilding Iraq) ... We also urge the sectors of electricity to contribute".

He said that he is holding meetings in UK with all major electricity companies and with B.B concerning the gas project in the south of the country. Hassan added: "We discussed with them the main plan of gas as well."

The availability of large energy reserves in Iraq represent a considerable incentive for oil and gas companies regarding investment in Iraq; but analysts say that the financial incentives for electricity companies ready to work in Iraq may not offset the risk.

Sebastian Air from John Hall Associates said "additional security can be requested but most of the workers in the electricity networks seek to avoid risks" since there other places where they can go.

Electricity Minister predicts light at the end of the tunnel
By Qassim Khidhir

03 May 2007 (Kurdish Globe)

While Kurdistan Region is far from the roadside bombs, bloodshed and sectarian violence that symbolize the rest of Iraq, it still suffers from a lack of basic services.

The Kurdistan Regional Government's (KRG) Minister of Electricity, Hoshyar Abdul Rahman Siwaily, stated that there are several projects under way to end the electricity crisis in Kurdistan.

"Private sects are building several power stations in all three provinces in Kurdistan, Erbil, Duhok and Sulaimaniya, and none of these projects will be completed this year except the one in Erbil city (the capital of Kurdistan Region)," said Minister Siwaily. He added, "Erbil's 500-megawatt power station, also known as Ahmad Ismael power station, is being built by the company Mass Global. It works with gas and is simple cycle. It will start producing electricity this year. It should be up to 250 megawatts by July, but after three months it will produce 500 megawatts."

Minister Siwaily said that the ministry signed a contract with the company Mass Global to also build a 750-megawatt power station in Chamchamal, located to the east of Kirkuk and west of Sulaimaniya. It works by gas and is combine cycle. The station will be completed in three stages, the first of which will end in early 2008. It will provide 250 megawatts of electricity.

A contract was also signed with the British company ATI, to build a 200-megawatt power station in Duhok, which would function by heavy oil and open by the end of this year. An agreement was signed with JACO, an American company, to install a 260-megawatt power plant in Taq Taq, 85 kilometers northeast of Erbil, to work by crude oil. It will begin producing electricity in early 2008.

"I can't say that the electricity shortage will be solved completely, but by the middle of next year, the electricity crisis will be over," said Minister Siwaily. He believes that the Ministry of Electricity needs time, finance and fuel to solve the electricity shortage completely.

KRG's Ministry of Electricity on Wednesday signed a contract with the Italian company ELC, guaranteeing consultations about the restoration of the Darbendikhan and Dukan dams, which supply Kurdistan Region with electricity. According to the statement, the restoration work will cost around $40 million (USD), and will be funded by the World Bank.

The Darbendikhan and Dukan dams are two hydropower stations that were built across the Lesser Zab and Sirwan rivers in Suleimaniya in the 1950s and 1960s to supply the region with electricity.

The former Iraqi government of Saddam Hussein had done very little to build big power plants in Kurdistan Region in contrast to other parts of Iraq. In the three provinces of Salahaddin, Ninawa and Kirkuk, there are 14 power plants. But in Kurdistan Region there are only the Dukan and Darbendikhan power stations as main sources for producing electricity. Sanctions during the 1990s prevented the construction of new power plants and imports of necessary parts to repair or maintain the network.

In the meantime, private generators are the main source of electricity in the region, also people using their own generators for electricity during the night hours. Aside from those, the two hydropower stations of Dukan and Darbendikhan and 11 small diesel stations produce 350 megawatts of power, but this amount is for all the provinces in Kurdistan while, only the province of Erbil alone needs 1,370 megawatts during the summer.

Oil, MNF committed to support electric projects
Ministry of oil and American forces have committed to supply 2 million liters of fuel to ministry of electric power to full lack of this item to operate some of electric stations which would inter service next June as ministry of electric power said that its daily need of fuel is 300 thousand barrels to fulfill electric power generating projects through the coming five years.

Great optimism outcome of Sharm El-Sheikh to take confirm
(Voice of Iraq) - 06-05-2007 | Sotaliraq.com - ÕæÊ ÇáÚÑÇÞ

Great optimism outcome of Sharm El-Sheikh confirmation to take practical steps to apply .. Citizens : Iraq needs to be a national covenant before the International
Baghdad-reaching and agencies
A number of members of the House Saturday, the need to translate the decisions of both the Sharm el-Sheikh on Iraq to the practical reality and real application even caress the Iraqi street fact those decisions.
He had been held in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt on Iraq, one of two International Covenant on which it is launching a document that name to support Iraq financially and politically and the other neighboring countries to help stabilize the situation in Iraq. He said Abbas Bayati MP from the United Iraqi Alliance decisions of the conference "a big step on the political and economic levels is to extract a confession stable political process and support government projects in the fight against terrorism and to disarm the militias and reconstruction."
Summarizing the results of the two-Bayati on three areas : the economy, security and refugees, and said, "economically the government got promises for debt reduction and the provision of grants, loans and technical assistance .. This promises a good needs to be followed up, and reflected on the situation of Iraq's economy. "
He added : "There is a security agreement and the Arab regional states to support a plan to impose law and will unify regional and international support for national reconciliation."
With regard to immigrants, he said : Sttatef participating States with the humanitarian situation for a certain period and for a while to enable the government to impose law and control of the situation. "
It was Hamid Majid Moussa, deputy Iraqi National List that the decisions reached by the Sharm el-Sheikh "requires perseverance and effort and work to be applied on the ground." He said "good results, and could if they were applied with seriousness and commitment to full fruition on the positives of concrete on the security situation and economic development.".
Musa promised that the Sharm El-Sheikh differs from the rest of the conferences held for Iraq as it "reflects the strong concerned on Iraq to take positive steps"
For his part, Abdel-Khaleq Zankenh pregnancy, the deputy in the coalition of Kurdistan, the Iraqi government and the regional and international parties to work for the success resulting from the decisions, and said "the parties regional and international commitment not to interfere in Iraqi affairs and to support the government and expect them not reflect differences on the Iraqi arena, because we have enough disasters and tribulations ... the crisis in Iraq is a regional crisis, international and domestic. "
Promised Zankenh, who belongs to the second largest parliamentary bloc, said that the conference is generally in favor of supporting Iraq and said, "is a step forward and a success for the Iraqi diplomacy. "Afterthought" But Maehem Iraqi citizen practical reality, these conferences end with a series of recommendations and decisions take some way to implement some expected lifting of debt and launch Grants, decisions awaiting for a long time. "
For his part, preferred Harith Obeidi, the deputy in the Iraqi Accord Front waiting and waiting to be taken by the parties that participated in the practical and positive steps in the Iraqi arena to a successful conference. Obeidi, who belongs to the third largest parliamentary bloc "look each conference involving international parties function of weight on the scene and the Arab League, and hopes to build on activating the findings of the conferees said that the lesson not only in putting in the conference or decisions but in practical implementation."
The Obeidi "the importance of the constitutional amendments, and to disarm militias without integration in the state's institutions of the fact that their loyalty to the party.
The leadership in Kurdistan Alliance Mahmoud Othman issuance of a document of the International Conference on Sharm el-Sheikh, and considered an international document is very important, stressing that the problem does not lie in the issuance of this document, which intensified international support for Iraq to get out of its current crisis, but a lesson in the implementation.
And across Othman said he believed that if the Iraqi government to obtain international and regional support to get out of their present plight, it should change its policy radically, especially for the achievement of national reconciliation, ending sectarian violence, and disarming the militias.
The heart of Dr. Salim and Minister of Human Rights in Iraq on the sidelines of the meetings of the International Covenant and the Iraqi neighboring conferees that the results were positive and fruitful because it is in the plan to bolster security and stability and to support Iraqi economy.
Salim pointed out that several paragraphs dealt with a document relating to the International Covenant on Human Rights, in support of human rights and work to protect and uphold the rule of law and overcome the heavy legacy of the past.
A member of the Chamber of Deputies and leader Accord Front Adnan Al-Dulaimi that the outcome of the International Covenant, includes positive points are in the interest of Iraq, but we fear wary of the non-application of these resolutions. Al-Dulaimi and expressed the hope that "the credibility of the parties concerned to implement the decisions of the Sharm el-Sheikh summit, but if the mere rhetorical speeches delivered by the participants and then went home, they will be added to a series of previous conferences did not exceed its media." He explained : "The most important thing in this matter is the project of national reconciliation.
In the poll of the views of citizens including emerged from the conferences, he said Samurai "Can we to judge the results of the International Conference on neighboring Iraq held in Sharm el-Sheikh once a funeral announcement through the media, surely there has not been announced, and that the conference, good for the real results of the conference would be clearer and more accurate after giving concerned who participated in the conference, which committed to those pledges, a reasonable period of time to implement what was decided at the conference, and then we can say that the conference was good and successful. "
And across the Samurai believed that the "most important thing in the conference is what the majority of participants said that the solution lies in the hands of the Iraqis and there must be a national covenant before the International Covenant."
With finds Raed Mohammad, "two step Sharm el-Sheikh was unfortunately late, and was supposed to declare the Arab States and the neighboring countries of Iraq and other countries interested in the Iraqi support of Iraq since 2003, although these pledges made at that time, what has befallen Iraq injury."
He says Haider Institini "There is no doubt that such an international conference may achieve something on the security front, Personally, I am counting on you to a lengthy meetings and individually or collectively to the neighboring countries of Iraq with the American delegation, to believe that the security problem related to the neighboring countries of Iraq to some of the armed groups causing lawlessness.
He says the Sudanese "all Iraqis want quick and successful solutions to the crises plaguing Iraq, particularly the security had not been solved so far because of regional interventions, due to the insistence of armed groups to achieve its goals in Iraq."
Sudanese adds that "the results of the international conference in Sharm el-Sheikh all point to the support of Iraq, government and people, and this means that the positive results of the conference will affect the situation in Iraq as positive if this support."