CBI issues ID3-trillion treasury bills to cover power contracts

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: The Central Bank of Iraq will issue treasury bills worth 3 trillion Iraqi dinars (ID) from the monetary reserves during the next few days to cover electricity contracts, according to a CBI consultant on Friday. “An agreement was reached between parliament and government on one hand and the ministries of finance and electricity and the CBI on the other to issue treasury bills to the tune of three trillion dinars, tantamount to $2.4 billion in order to cover a loan for electricity contracts with General Electric (GE) and Siemens companies,” Mazhar Mohammed Saleh told Iraqi News. The Iraqi finance minister had said on Aug. 9 that treasury bills will be issued after the government failed to obtain a parliamentary approval to issue bonds to finance contracts of electricity of which Iraq produces only 50% of its needs. AmR (P) 1