Iraq starts producing 24,000 megawatts of electric power once again
Electricity transmission towers. Photo: Iran Front Page
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – The Iraqi Ministry of Electricity announced recently that electric power generation in Iraq reached more than 24,000 megawatts, the Iraqi News Agency (INA) reported.
The spokesperson of the Ministry of Electricity, Ahmed Musa, mentioned that the increasing gas supplies delivered to southern Iraq, which were agreed upon within the Iraqi-Iranian deal to barter oil for gas, helped stabilize electricity production.
Musa explained that other power plants available in Iraq will start operating once gas supplies become sufficient.
The Iraqi Prime Minister, Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani, announced last week that Iraq reached an agreement with Iran regarding gas imports, which Iraq needs to operate power plants.
During a meeting with Iraqi officials in the energy sector earlier on Tuesday, the Iraqi Prime Minister noted that the US sanctions and non-compliance with the gas dues payment mechanism agreed upon in 2018 caused a 50 percent reduction in gas supplies from Iran, which negatively affected electricity production in Iraq.
Since June, Iraq has started benefiting from the electrical interconnection project with the Gulf countries to cover its domestic needs, especially with the increase in energy demand during the summer months, in an attempt to tackle the shortage caused by the recent decline in Iranian gas supplies to Iraq.
Iraq produces about 23,000 megawatts of electricity, while the country needs about 35,000 megawatts to secure electric power around the clock.