The World Bank calls on Iraq to take advantage of the oil recovery by switching to renewable energy

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[size=52]The World Bank calls on Iraq to take advantage of the oil recovery by switching to renewable energy[/size]

[size=45]Translated by: Hamed Ahmed[/size]
[size=45]The World Bank issued a report by a team of energy experts in which they examined an assessment of the costs and benefits of transitioning the electric power sector in Iraq from dependence on fossil fuels that produce harmful gas emissions to renewable, environmentally friendly fuels, amid an accelerated international effort towards this transformation.[/size]
[size=45]The report indicated that the success of this approach in Iraq will depend a lot on the political will of the country to proceed with the process of reforming this sector and overcoming the obstacles that stand against it, which requires popular understanding and support for the necessity of this transition.[/size]
[size=45]The report, which was translated by (Al-Mada), stated that "Iraq, despite its enormous oil wealth, with the production rate reaching 4.5 million barrels per day, the country's level of development is that of a poor country."[/size]
[size=45]The report added, "Iraq is among the worst countries in the Middle East and North Africa with regard to benefiting from human resources, involving women in work, and providing basic services." He pointed out, "The problem of the poor level of provision of basic services, especially electricity, is what reflects the level of development in Iraq."[/size]
[size=45]The report stresses that “Iraqi families suffer from continuous power outages,” noting that “the aging of power plants in Iraq has prompted Iraqis to rely heavily on expensive private diesel generators that cause high pollution rates.”[/size]
[size=45]He continues, "A statistic conducted in 2019 showed that Iraq ranks fifth in the world in terms of the number of diesel generators relative to the population."[/size]
[size=45]And the report added, "Achieving the transition to paid electric power in Iraq needs to find solutions to the existing failures."[/size]
[size=45]He stressed, "This includes the improvement of the economics of renewable energy and the standard international position to combat climate change and reduce gas emissions," expecting that "it will occur over the next twenty years."[/size]
[size=45]And he added, "The economic costs and benefits of achieving the transition to electric power in Iraq are linked to the reform process."[/size]
[size=45]The report believes that “this transition process requires financial costs, as it requires significant investments in this sector.”[/size]
[size=45]And he stated, "The rate of oil production in Iraq in 2021 has doubled its rate for the year 2010."[/size]
[size=45]The report finds that "the credit for this is due to the amount of investment that was spent on developing the oil sector, which amounted to about $104 billion."[/size]
[size=45]And he added, "The revenues from what the country sold of crude oil during that period, despite the fluctuations in global oil market prices, amounted to more than $834 billion."[/size]
[size=45]The report continued, “These resources had a significant impact on the country’s gross national product, raising it to an above-average income level, achieving an increase in per capita income from $3,938 in 2010 to $4,971 at the present time.”[/size]
[size=45]He pointed out, "Iraq did not invest a share of this wealth in achieving long-term development in order to diversify the sources of its economy and invest in sectors other than the oil sector."[/size]
[size=45]The report stated, “This is one of the structural impediments that cast a shadow over the level of future economic growth.”[/size]
[size=45]He noted, "The level of public investment has remained insufficient to meet the needs of human resources and the country's infrastructure."[/size]
[size=45]The report went on to say that “public investments related to the oil sector reached 60% in 2021, compared to 17% that were spent on the oil sector during the year 2010.”[/size]
[size=45]The report stressed the need for additional efforts to create financial space to meet the needs of the increasing challenges posed by climate change and the expectation of a long-term decrease in demand for fossil fuel sources.[/size]
[size=45]And he continues, "Calls for reforms in Iraq, especially in the energy sector, are not new."[/size]
[size=45]The report stated, "These reforms, which range from short to medium-term in nature, focus on achieving progress in the energy sector, financial settlements, and securing investments in the private sector."[/size]
[size=45]And he added, "All these reforms, which have been working on planning for years, are included in the white paper issued by the Iraqi government, which has not yet been implemented."[/size]
[size=45]And the report considered, "The implementation of reforms is a necessary condition for Iraq to achieve the transition process in the electric power sector and benefit from its economic returns."[/size]
[size=45]And he called on Iraq to “seize the current opportunity of high oil prices by changing its development method and moving towards the economic development agenda by diversifying the sources of the economy and achieving a transition in the energy sector.”[/size]
[size=45]And the report went on, that "the process of laxity in this movement will make it difficult to achieve this transition with expectations of a decline in oil prices when reaching the stage of total cessation in the world from the use of fossil fuels for energy generation."[/size]
[size=45]About: The official website of the World Bank[/size]
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