Thread: Archive News - Iraqi Dinar Think Tank - 28/03/10 - 21/06/10

Committee on Oil and gas are excluded from the Federal Court to endorse the decision to cancel the contracts of licensing rounds

Ruled out for the oil and gas committee in parliament to endorse the former Federal Court decision to cancel the contracts of oil licensing rounds against the backdrop of a lawsuit by the former deputy before Shatha al-Musawi to challenge its legitimacy.

He stressed member of the Abd al-Hadi al-Hassani, that the government acknowledged "these contracts with foreign oil companies in accordance with Iraqi laws in force," denying that "the contracts of licensing rounds partnership contracts also see Moussaoui."

The Federal Court gave the former deputy Shatha al-Musawi submitted a lawsuit about two rounds of licenses for the payment of a special committee of international experts will consider whether the contracts were concluded by the Ministry of Oil partnership contracts or service

http://www.radiodijla.com/cgi-bin/ne...?id=2010-06-04

Turkey companies show interest in investing in Iraq in all fields

Investment Authority said today that Iraqi companies Kata and Krupp Krupp than the Turkish Asa expressed their willingness to invest in the residential sector, commercial and health in Iraq.

The authority said in a statement received by the independent press agency (Iba) a copy of the investment process that will create housing and sophisticated construction of five shopping centers, two of them in Baghdad and the other distributed in Karbala, Najaf and Basra.

The statement added that the two companies intend to transfer the experience of hospitals over a group as it were in Istanbul to Baghdad, which included setting up a hospital contains centers for laundering kidney and laboratories for analysis of disease and resonance and X-ray equipment and the origins of Germany.

Investment includes the establishment of a modern residential complexes, sophisticated and the construction of five shopping centers (malls), two of them in Baghdad and the other distributed to Karbala, Najaf and Basra.

He added that the two companies intend to transfer the experience of Group of Hospitals (over as if he) in Istanbul to Baghdad, which included setting up a hospital contains centers for laundering renal and laboratories for analysis of disease and resonance and X-ray equipment and the origins of Germany.

http://www.ipairaq.com/index.php?nam...onomy&id=26326

Shahristani: It is possible to access the prices of oil more just if the commitment to improve the OPEC countries

He's Oil Minister Hussain al-Shahristani expressed his dissatisfaction with the current commitment levels of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.

Shahristani said in a press statement today in the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur, it is possible to access the prices of oil more just if improved commitment of Member States in OPEC production quotas.

He pointed out that the appropriate time to discuss the share of Iraq's production of oil set by OPEC would be after three years from now, when the country produces four million barrels per day.

He explained that Iraq is currently pumping 2.5 million barrels per day of oil, and that production will increase by between 200 and 250 thousand barrels per day next year. He added with a greater commitment we will be able to access more equitable prices.

And participates in meetings of the Organization of al-Shahristani of Petroleum Exporting Countries OPEC taking place in the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur.

http://www.ipairaq.com/index.php?nam...onomy&id=26294

Kanna: privatization of the public sector will bring benefits to the Iraqi economy

Said a former member of the Committee on the economy and reconstruction in the House of Representatives Kanna said the next parliament will continue to put forward projects to privatize some institutions in the public sector to achieve the benefits of economic difficulties.

"We were in contact with the agency, the independent press (Iba), through the Economic Committee in the Prime Minister in the House and in cooperation with the United Nations will go to develop the industrial sectors and productivity in the country in a way that can contribute in enhancing the state treasury in the future.

He indicated that it will be the development of industrial and agricultural sector through the development of plans and strategies studied, including the five-year plan to the government that will shape the image of the economic optimization of the country.

It is noted that in May last conference was held to discuss the five-year plan for Iraq was reached several findings and perceptions of the plan will reduce the additional costs for development projects, unlike McCann gets in the annual plans, the fact that the investments would be subject to surveys A comprehensive need of cash before implementation.

He pointed out that we have political differences cast a shadow on the economic sector, which led to the lack of a suitable environment for investment, but this issue will be avoided after the formation of the Government and national partnership after the House of Representatives held its meetings.

http://www.ipairaq.com/index.php?nam...onomy&id=26214

Malfunction stops Iraq’s oil pipeline to Turkey

Iraqi oil exports through the pipeline to Turkey have been stopped due to technical malfunctions on the Iraqi side.

“The malfunction occurred at the pipeline’s section number 156 in Salah al-Din province,” said a source from the Iraqi North Oil Company (NOC).

He noted that the company’s staff is working on repairing the malfunction to resume pumping oil to Turkey by soonest.

http://en.aswataliraq.info/?p=132871

American Ambassador urges Iraqi government to support private sector

The U.S. Ambassador in Baghdad, Christopher Hill, on Monday called on the Iraqi government to support the private sector to improve the national economy.

Speaking during the agricultural and commercial forum, organized by the U.S. embassy in al-Rashied hotel in Baghdad, the ambassador said the Iraqi government should support the private sector to improve the economy, mainly the agricultural sector, pointing out a delegation of 20 U.S. companies specialized in the agricultural sector is visiting Iraq now to identify the sector’s needs and problems facing it.

“The visit comes within the strategic framework agreement signed between Iraq and the United States,” he added.

http://en.aswataliraq.info/?p=132895

CBI dollar sales up to $182m

The Central Bank of Iraq (CBI) dollar sales went up to reach $182.444 million in its daily auction Tuesday, compared to $82.740 million in the previous session.

“The demand hit $4.690 million in cash, covered at an exchange rate of 1,183 Iraqi dinars per dollar, and $177.754 million in foreign transfers outside the country, covered at an exchange rate of 1,173 Iraqi dinars per dollar,” according to a CBI news bulletin received by Aswat al-Iraq news agency.

None of the 13 banks that participated in today’s session offered to sell dollars.

http://en.aswataliraq.info/?p=132912

Etisalat Interested In Iraq’s Fourth Mobile License – report

The Wall Street Journal reported that the United Arab Emirates-based Emirates Telecommunications Corp. (ETISALAT.AD) is interested in Iraq’s fourth license to operate mobile phones.

“The Iraqi government has announced a fourth mobile license and we are interested in that,” Mohammad Omran, Etisalat’s chairman, told Dow Jones Newswires on the sidelines of an Arab communications meeting in Amman, Jordan, according to the daily.

Omran also said that his company was interested in buying a stake in the third Iraqi mobile operator Korek in northern Iraq. “There were talks with Korek to acquire stake but we haven’t reached an agreement,” he said.

The Baghdad government approved last month a fourth mobile license to operate in the country. It said the winning company, which will be selected through an open tender and operate throughout Iraq, is set to have a 65%-stake in the venture, while the remaining 35% will be owned by the Iraqi Communications Ministry.

The Ministry is yet to announce a tender for the license.

http://en.aswataliraq.info/?p=132911

Iraq political tussle gathers momentum

In less than two weeks, the newly elected Iraqi Parliament is scheduled to meet, now that the Supreme Court has ratified the March 7 election results, which confirm former prime minister Eyad Allawi winning 91 seats of Parliament and incumbent Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki with 89.

Neither of them has the 163 majority needed to form a cabinet on their own (as stated in Article 76 of the Constitution), and therefore an alliance of some sort needs to emerge to bring Iraq out of the haunting vacuum created by the March elections.

Allawi, however, says that his cabinet will be ready within a week, while Al Maliki insists that only he is the legitimate prime minister of Iraq. A quick read through the Iraqi press, however, shows that no less than 10 prime minister-hopefuls are promoting themselves for the job.

What makes or breaks any of the big names earmarked for the premiership is what heavyweights in the Iran-backed Iraqi National Alliance (INA) have to say about the next government in Iraq.

Nobody understands that reality better than Al Maliki, who has been desperate for a reversal of fortunes since March. He went for a manual recount of nearly 2.5 million votes in Baghdad, but they all showed identical results, re-confirming Allawi as the next prime minister.

He tried to disqualify a handful of Allawi's allies on charges of being allied to the outlawed Baath Party, but that did not work. He is now reaching out to the INA, composed of former allies who had helped bring him to power in 2006 although he had refused to work with them last March.

Perhaps an inflated ego got in the way, or perhaps Al Maliki wanted to polish his image in the Arab world and distance himself from Iran, which was strongly endorsing the all-Shiite coalition. Or maybe, the Prime Minister feared that the INA would never stand up for him until curtain fall since within it stood strong prime minister hopefuls, like Adel Abdul Mahdi of the Supreme Iraqi Islamic Council (SIIC).

As a result, both Al Maliki and the INA failed to come out with a majority -- the INA losing 70 of its seats -- and thereby entire parliamentary majority.

Despite the setback, its leaders remain deeply rooted within the business elite of the Shiite community and the religious establishments, thanks to seasoned politicians like Ebrahim Al Jaafary, Moqtada Al Sadr, and Ammar Al Hakim of SIIC.

Al Sadr has made it clear that there is a low ceiling for any deal with Al Maliki since during his years in power the Prime Minister had been "ungrateful to the Sadrist bloc". Al Sadr after all, had supported Al Maliki wholeheartedly, giving him legitimacy among grassroots Shiites, while Al Maliki gave Al Sadr protection from Iraqi officialdom, turning a blind eye to the activities of his Mahdi Army.

In the summer of 2007, the alliance snapped when Al Sadr walked out, objecting to Al Maliki's refusal to call for a timetable for US troop withdrawal. Al Maliki -- now seeing Al Sadr as a political embarrassment in the Arab world -- treated the walk-out as a blessing in disguise. He immediately began to persecute the Sadrists, arresting thousands in the months ahead of the March 2010 elections.

Suddenly, Al Maliki realised that the most popular religious politician in all of Iraq was still Al Sadr. The man had miraculously won 40 of the 70 seats of the INA, making his blessing an absolute must for any incoming prime minister.

Al Sadr's two magic traits, protection of the young and commitment to the poor, were two skills that Al Maliki never fully understood and badly needed to strengthen his grassroots power base within Iraq. The race for Al Sadr's support is ongoing between Al Maliki and Allawi although the 37-year-old leader has made it clear that he favours neither of them for the premiership, given Allawi's secularism and the fact that he went to war against the Sadrists back in 2004.

Another natural obstacle is the position of Al Sadr's allies in the INA, being Al Hakim's SIIC. Although currently in dialogue with Al Maliki, SIIC cannot forget or forgive that it was because of Al Maliki's walk out in January 2009 that they lost 8 out of 11 provinces throughout Iraq.

The same scenario was repeated, on a larger damage scale, during the parliamentary elections of 2010 when Al Maliki insisted to run independently on his State of Law Coalition (SoL). Although talks between Al Maliki's team and SIIC have not yet been completely called off, they remain in limbo because SIIC wants its number two man, Adel Abdul Mahdi, as prime minister while Al Maliki insists only he is entitled to the job.

Last week, a furious Al Hakim fired away at Al Maliki saying: "I speak to the politicians and tell them: Come down from your ivory tower and [do away] with your personal ambitions. If it [power] lasted for others, it would never have reached you!"

The strong message vibrated loud and clear throughout the Green Zone and within Al Maliki's office. It means that the Prime Minister has finally lost both foe and ally, and is likely to seal his political ambitions, at least for now.

http://www.zawya.com/Story.cfm/sidZA...ers%20momentum

Zubaidi discusses with British Ambassador in Iraq, strengthen economic cooperation between the two countries

Research and Finance Minister Baqer al-Zubaidi with the Ambassador of the United Kingdom in Iraq, John Jenkins, political and economic relations between the two countries and the Iraqi political scene after the legislative elections.

A statement from the Ministry of Radio Dijla received a copy of it today, "that during the meeting to review efforts by the political blocs to form the next Iraqi government and ways to strengthen economic and political relations between the two countries."

The statement said Zubaidi, the price of the UK's position in Iraq and supported in all fields, especially in the economic and financial-support strategic balance and the financial status and accounting of Iraq and provide the expertise and the establishment of courses for staff of the Iraqi in the field of development banking reality and Rules.

http://www.radiodijla.com/cgi-bin/ne...?id=2010-06-05