Iraq expands electricity sources to reduce dependence on Iranian gas

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[size=52]Iraq expands electricity sources to reduce dependence on Iranian gas[/size]

[size=45]Baghdad/ Firas Adnan[/size]
[size=45]The Ministry of Electricity reported the existence of a contract with an Emirati company that includes, in its first phase, the provision of 1,000 megawatts through solar energy, while noting that Iraq has completed 88% of the Gulf interconnection related matters, leaving only the linking of the Al-Faw transformer station with the Kuwaiti Al-Zour station, stressing that many of the The stations are operational, pending the rise in Iranian gas supplies to agreed levels.[/size]
[size=45]The ministry's spokesman, Ahmed Musa, said, "The volume of production of electrical stations in Iraq has currently reached 21 megawatts."[/size]
[size=45]Moussa added, "This volume does not meet the need," stressing that "there are many stations ready to operate, but we are waiting for Iranian gas emissions to reach the agreed levels of 55 million cubic meters per day."[/size]
[size=45]He pointed out, "The ministry paid the full dues of the Iranian side, which were among the carried forward and accumulated problems, and Iraq has worked to solve them recently."[/size]
[size=45]And Moussa indicated that "the quantities of gas currently coming to us are 40 million cubic meters," noting that "raising the quantities of gas would have a positive impact on the processing hours."[/size]
[size=45]He stated, "Iranian gas has witnessed a significant decline in the past periods, but its rise to the current level is the result of government efforts, as it decreased weeks ago to 30 million cubic meters."[/size]
[size=45]Moussa continues, "The Iranian side, according to the meeting with its officials, informed us that its only condition for raising gas quantities is to pay the previous dues for the year 2020, which amounted to more than 1.6 billion dollars."[/size]
[size=45]He stated, "The ministry informed everyone, whether the government, parliament or public opinion, of the need to pay the previous debts, which is what happened and it was supposed to rise after the gas supplies were paid to what was agreed upon."[/size]
[size=45]Moussa added, "There are many units and stations waiting for Iranian gas after completing maintenance on them and discharging their loads, and this could help reach a production of 24 megawatts."[/size]
[size=45]He stressed, "The failure to raise gas quantities is due to technical reasons, since the increase in quantities must be gradual, and there is continuous coordination with the Iranian Ministry of Energy to complete this process in order to keep pace with the increased loads."[/size]
[size=45]Moussa added, "The preparation since the end of last week is better than it was before, and we are on the verge of a continuous increase in processing hours."[/size]
[size=45]He stressed, "The hours of supplying electricity cannot be calculated in numbers because the supply varies from one governorate to another, but rather from one region to another within the governorate."[/size]
[size=45]Moussa continues, “This issue is governed by the readiness of the supply networks that the ministry worked on dismantling, increasing their capacities and discharging their loads, the extent of citizens’ consumption, the size of abuses, and the governorates’ commitment to the quotas approved for them and not exceeding them, as well as the technical problems that may occur.”[/size]
[size=45]He added, "The ministry does not rely in its projects to increase production on gas and fossil fuels, but rather there are projects in solar energy and electrical interconnection."[/size]
[size=45]And Moussa added, "In terms of solar energy, the ministry signed a legal advisory contract that represents a starting point for starting work, after we determined, through negotiations with the Emirati Masdar Company, the technical specifications, economic feasibility, speed of work and commitment to the time limit, and then reducing the tariff price after it was high."[/size]
[size=45]He went on to say that "the percentage of completion will be within a medium plan of two to three years," explaining that "the first stage will be the processing rate of 1000 megawatts."[/size]
[size=45]Moussa said, "The file of the electrical connection with the Gulf must be accompanied by a continuous development and move forward because it achieves reliability and stability of the electrical network, and we have obtained a decision of the Council of Ministers stipulating to proceed with this connection."[/size]
[size=45]And he added, "The project includes a number of belongings on the Gulf side and a number of obligations on us in Iraq, which has completed what includes 88 percent of the transmission lines and the establishment of the Al-Faw Transfer Station."[/size]
[size=45]Moussa added, "What remains for us is the part related to the Gulf side and its obligations, which includes agreeing on the tariff price and establishing a line linking Al-Faw station with Al-Zour station in Kuwait, and we are proceeding to resolve this file."[/size]
[size=45]For his part, the expert in the field of energy, Furat Al-Moussawi, said that "the signing of the establishment of solar-powered electric stations has two reasons. The first is to ensure the multiplicity of energy sources."[/size]
[size=45]Al-Moussawi added, "Iraq is looking for clean and renewable energy that parallels international agreements on climate variables and enhances the shortage of electric power."[/size]
[size=45]He noted that "the beginning was with the Masdar Company to produce 1,000 megawatts, which is not a large amount, and at the same time the beginning of multiple strategic infrastructure projects in this aspect, as is the case for many countries in the region."[/size]
[size=45]Al-Moussawi talked about the second reason, which is "Iraq's possession of large solar energy that qualifies it to invest," but he pointed to "obstacles, the most prominent of which are costs to establish large infrastructures that are not available to him at the present time."[/size]
[size=45]He expected, "It takes two to three years to build the infrastructure, and the Iraqis will feel the results after that."[/size]
[size=45]Al-Moussawi concluded, "Iraq has a financial abundance achieved from the rise in oil prices, which must be invested in development, including renewable electric energy projects.[/size]
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