The IEA’s report on Iraq released this week highlights what’s become an increasingly obvious yet important trend at play in the country’s critical energy sector: whilst the oil sector has thrived in recent years, gas and power generation are barely limping onward– and future prospects aren’t rosy.
Rapid oil output gains have pushed associated gas production to record highs, but with inadequate infrastructure to handle this gas, huge volumes are going up in smoke (MEES, 22 February). Despite the efforts of Basra Gas Company (BGC: South Gas Company 51%, Shell 44%, Mitsubishi 5%), Iraq continues to flare more than half of the record 3bn cfd gas produced. And the issues troubling the electricity front are even clearer. Chronic power cuts last summer sparked massive protests that cost the former electricity minister his job (MEES, 28 September 2018) and ended former PM Haidar al-Abadi’s bid for re-election. (CONTINUED - 937 WORDS)
