Local Alsumaria News publishes the exchange rates of the dollar against the Iraqi dinar in the local Iraqi markets for Tuesday, August 6, 2024.

The dollar prices decreased with the opening of the Al-Kifah and Al-Harithiya stock exchanges in Baghdad, recording 149,800 dinars for every 100 dollars.

As for the selling prices in the exchange shops in the local markets in Baghdad, they decreased, as the selling price reached 150,750 dinars, while the purchase price reached 148,750 dinars for every 100 dollars.  On February 7, 2022, the Council of Ministers announced its approval to amend the dollar exchange rate to 1,320 dinars per dollar.

For about a year, specifically since the Central Bank began operating the electronic platform and the international financial transfer system “SWIFT”, the dollar exchange rate in Iraq has not witnessed stability despite the government and the Central Bank’s attempts to control the exchange rate in parallel markets.   LINK

More Than 1000 Contractors Declare Bankruptcy In Sulaymaniyah

 The Contractors Union in Sulaymaniyah Governorate renewed, on Tuesday, its demand to pay contractors’ dues for completed projects that have been stopped since 2014, revealing at the same time the bankruptcy of more than 1,000 contractors in the governorate.

The spokesman for the Contractors Union, Sulaymaniyah branch, Zain Abdullah, said during a press conference attended by Shafak News Agency, that contractors have been suffering since 2014 until now from the non-payment of financial dues for completed projects, as well as the non-granting of a financial guarantee letter, and the non-disbursement of insurance related to completed projects.

He added that after holding two separate meetings with the management of the regional bank and the central bank in Sulaymaniyah, it was agreed to form a committee and disburse financial insurance and the financial guarantee letter according to the completion rates of the projects within a period not exceeding three days.

Abdullah also pointed out that during the period from 1/2/2023 to 7/1/2024, a financial amount of 179 billion dinars was disbursed for new projects only in Sulaymaniyah, while the financial amounts were not disbursed for the completed projects implemented in 2014.

The union demanded that all dues be paid as soon as possible and that clearing houses be opened between companies so that funds can be transferred to the companies’ bank accounts.

He continued on behalf of the union that the contractors declared bankruptcy, and out of a total of 1200 contractors in Sulaymaniyah, there are now only 100 contractors working, and the rest have stopped working due to lack of financial liquidity.  LINK

Oil Issues Clarification Regarding Basra-Haditha Pipeline

Tuesday 06 , August 2024 | Economic Number of readings: 50  Baghdad / NINA / The Ministry of Oil issued a clarification regarding the (Basra-Haditha) pipeline.

The ministry stated in a statement: “Despite the many statements published by our ministry, which clearly explained the full truth of the Basra-Haditha crude oil pipeline project with all its details and the economic feasibility of its establishment, some still insist on addressing the project, describing it with inaccurate and unrealistic information.

From time to time, articles are still circulating in the media or on social media insisting on calling the project by a name other than the official name announced for it, drawing unrealistic scenarios that are not consistent with the direction of the ministry, which leads the oil wealth with confident steps and wise policies witnessed by everyone, achieving distinguished successes at all levels of extraction, transportation, refining and distribution.”

She added: “The Ministry of Oil has been keen, as is its custom, to be transparent in sharing with the Iraqi people all the developments witnessed by the oil sector and the important achievements made in it, out of its keenness to convey accurate information, as not a period passes without news to our people about completed projects and others under construction or in the process of starting implementation, as these achievements are backed by the tremendous efforts of our ministry’s cadres and its various formations.”

She continued: “Based on this principle, the ministry is currently preparing to start implementing one of the giant strategic projects in the field of transporting crude oil from Rumaila in Basra Governorate in the south to Haditha in Anbar Governorate in the north, as the project serves two main goals: diversifying export outlets and supplying current and future refineries and power stations with crude oil.”

The Ministry clarified in response to the recent article that discussed the project with inaccurate information, the Ministry of Oil would like to say that the officials in our Ministry have stated in more than one forum and occasion that the project does not extend to the port of Aqaba and does not contain any new pipelines outside the borders,

but rather work is being done in parallel with the implementation of the project to link it with the Iraqi-Turkish export pipeline by linking the Haditha warehouse to the (IT1A) station in Baiji with a 200 km long pipeline, where the cadres of our Ministry, represented by the formations of the Oil Projects Company, the Lines and Pipelines Company, and the North Oil Company, have rehabilitated and maintained the pipeline extending from the (IT1A) station in Baiji to the Turkish border point in Fishkhabur,

which was severely damaged during the events that the northern governorates were exposed to during the past years, where the Ministry provided, by resorting to the maintenance option, despite its difficulty, large sums of money estimated at 500 million dollars.

She added that the halt of oil exports through the Turkish port of Ceyhan costs the state large financial fees and causes the loss of customers in Europe and North America, which calls for accelerating the start of this vital project, as all the oil produced from the Kirkuk fields and the northern region is consumed in the refining sector and the halt of crude oil exports from the Kurdistan Region.

She pointed out that the projects implemented by our ministry, especially the strategic ones, are subject to in-depth studies at all technical and economic levels that extend over many years, taking into consideration long-term oil policies and market needs.

Reputable international companies are called upon to prepare technical and engineering documents in order to mature them before they are ready for implementation. Accordingly, the statement that the project is not economically feasible is contrary to reality, as the Ministry of Oil is the most keen on the success of the projects it implements and ensuring their economic feasibility.

She explained that a large part of the oil from this pipeline will be consumed locally by equipping the refineries of the central and southern regions of Nasiriyah, Samawah, Karbala, Najaf, Diwaniyah and the refineries of the northern region, in addition to supplying power stations with crude oil during peak times.

She added that our ministry has repeatedly stated that the Haditha-Aqaba pipeline project is not included in the ministry’s plans and that in any case it will be subject to a technical and economic feasibility study, but some people, due to their lack of full understanding of the project’s components, continue to present it inaccurately, describing the project in a way that it does not contain, provoking people’s emotions in obstructing the project and putting obstacles in the way of the country’s progress and prosperity.

She pointed out that the project will be a fundamental pillar in driving the Iraqi economy by maximizing financial resources, raising the country’s overall growth level, and delivering Iraqi oil to European and American markets through the port of Ceyhan and perhaps in the future through the port of Tartous or the port of Tripoli on the Mediterranean Sea at competitive costs that allow the sale of oil at rates higher than the price offered for oil available at Gulf ports thanks to the short distance and low shipping costs.

The project, with its large facilities extending along the pipeline route, whether the giant warehouses in both Rumaila and Haditha or the pumping stations, will create significant job opportunities for the country’s people.

The project’s location near the development road will support the government’s orientations to raise the globality of the project and make it a global energy corridor alongside the trade corridor and push surrounding countries to invest in oil and gas transport projects through Iraq, which will positively reflect on the country’s economy.

The Ministry of Oil stressed that it is the guardian of the country’s oil policy and the guarantor of the success of the projects that are planned accurately and with the most efficient Iraqi expertise and employing the latest technologies by harnessing major international companies in the field of consulting, planning, manufacturing and implementation.

It called on all media interested in the oil field to clarify information from the accredited media outlets in our ministry or through the responsible authorities in the formations of the Ministry of Oil in order to obtain accurate information and an objective and constructive presentation in describing projects in general and the Basra-Haditha crude oil pipeline project in particular. /

https://ninanews.com/Website/News/Details?key=1145998

Iraq Exports More Than 8 Million Barrels Of Crude Oil And Its Derivatives To America In A Month

The US Energy Information Administration announced on Tuesday that Iraq exported more than 8 million barrels of crude oil and its derivatives to the United States during the month of May of this year.

A schedule of the administration, which Shafaq News Agency has reviewed, showed that Iraq’s exports of oil and its derivatives in April amounted to 8.460 million barrels, down by 2.52 million barrels from what it recorded in April, which amounted to 10.512 million barrels.

The US Energy Information Administration stated that OPEC’s exports of crude oil and its products to America during April amounted to 47 million and 348 thousand barrels, with Saudi Arabia leading the highest rate of exports to America, amounting to 15 million and 69 thousand barrels during the same period of time.

Iraqi oil exports to the United States have increased significantly over recent years, with export figures reaching record levels in some months, due in part to Iraq’s ability to increase its oil production, as well as rising global demand for oil.

Oil trade relations between Iraq and the United States play an important role in strengthening economic relations between the two countries, and contribute to enhancing the stability of the global oil market and providing energy to the American and global economies.  LINK