Iraqi railways to be profitable company within two months

Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – The Iraqi Minister of Transport, Nasser Al-Shibli, stated on Monday that the railway company now has a contract to transport oil derivatives containers from Baiji and Qayyarah and within a month or two it will be one of the profitable companies, according to the Iraqi News Agency (INA).

“The Iraqi railways were established during the forties of the last century. With the passage of time, they were used up, but the ministry renovated some of the railways from Baghdad to Mosul and from Baghdad to Basra and made them ready to work,” Shibli explained.

“The railway company is currently working in Samawah city in Muthanna governorate, 280 kilometres southeast of Baghdad, and also in the western region of Iraq where the railways are usable. However, the train that crosses the Euphrates was destroyed by ISIS terrorists, but we agreed with the governorate to work on rehabilitating the bridge where the train passes to have the railway functioning once again,” Shibli elaborated.

“Although the railway company is now a losing company, the contract to transport oil derivatives containers will make it a profitable company within a month or two,” Shibli confirmed.

Shibli clarified that the ministry signed a contract with an Italian company to develop new designs of railways starting from the Al-Faw port situated on the Persian Gulf to Turkey. He added that these designs will be completed in August.