Thread: Archive News - Iraqi Dinar Think Tank - 22/06/2010 - 04/10/2010

Kuwait hosts a seminar to discuss ways to expanded development of relations between Iraq and the Gulf States

Kuwait hosts during the next few symposium includes an expanded political figures and the Academy of Iraqi and Gulf to discuss ways to develop relations between Iraq and the Arab Gulf states.

The Secretary General of the Council to support the Iraqi relations - Kuwait Abdul Rahim Rifai in a press statement that Kuwait will host on its territory during the next few symposium gathered legislators, politicians, intellectuals and academics and their counterparts from the Gulf to study ways to develop the Iraqi relations - Gulf and discuss ideas and proposals will be about it.

Rifai pointed out that the working paper on the symposium and their recommendations will be submitted to the government and parliament will return to provide ideas contained in the working paper to the Kuwaiti government and parliament.

http://radionawa.com/ar/NewsDetailN....189&LinkID=151

If You’re Not In, You Can’t Win

Iraq is starting the holy fasting month of Ramadan in blistering summer heat: up to 49 C (120 F) in places!

It has been a hot week for oil news too:

• The Korea National Oil Corp (KNOC) hits oil in the Bazian and Sangaw North blocks in Kurdistan;
• Dana Gas has increased gas its production by 88% over the same period last year;
• Gulf Keystone (GKP) shares were up over 30% at one stage (they’ve since fallen back a bit), following updates on its operations in Kurdistan, and continuing rumours of a possible takeover bid;
• WesternZagros gives a positive update on exploration.

The news was not entirely positive, however, with a couple of temporary setbacks reported: a guerrilla attack on the Ceyhan pipeline in Turkey, and Sterling Energy having problems with a drilling rig.

Those success stories involve companies that all took the decision to enter Iraq some years ago, at a time when it required an even more courageous decision that it would today. A couple of years on, those guys are looking very clever!

So who will be looking clever a few years from now? Opportunities abound in Iraq for all manner of businesses, and it’s obvious that only those who take that first step can be tomorrow’s winners.

If you’re not in, you can’t win.

http://www.iraq-businessnews.com/2010/08/12/if-youre-not-in-you-cant-win/

Dana Gas Iraq Output Nearly Doubles

Dana Gas PJSC, the Middle East’s largest regional, private sector, natural gas company, has announced its financial results for the quarter ended 30th June 2010.

Revenue from the sale of hydrocarbons increased to AED 428 million, with gross profit reaching AED 179 million. These figures represent increases of 41% and 84% respectively, compared to the same period last year. This is due to strong production growth, amounting in aggregate to 29%, from the Company’s operations in Egypt (where ten fields are now producing) and in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, where production from the Khor Mor field continues to increase. It is also due to higher market prices for, condensate, LPG and oil during the quarter, as compared to 2Q 2009.

In the Kurdistan Region of Iraq Dana Gas, through its 40% share, produced 1.06 million boe of gas and condensate during the quarter, an increase of approximately 88% over the same period in 2009. The first train of the LPG Plant at Khor Mor is in partial operation, producing gas and condensate. Production of LPG will start later in 2010, which will further increase production.

With regard to the Iraqi operations, Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Ahmed Al-Arbeed, said: “In the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, production continues to grow as we supply gas to meet the demands of the Erbil and Bazian power stations and it remains a source of pride to Dana Gas that this region of Iraq is one of the few with a reliable electricity supply. We are producing gas and condensate through our new permanent facilities and the first train of the LPG plant at Khor Mor will commence LPG production shortly. Consequently, Dana Gas’ growth is set to continue.”

Dana Gas should not be confused with the London-listed Dana Petroleum (LSE: DNX).

http://www.iraq-businessnews.com/201...early-doubles/

$8.7 Billion Missing – NGOs Blame Lack of Accountability

The NGO Coordination Committee in Iraq (NCCI) has issued the following statement regarding the $8.7 billion of Iraqi funds that cannot be accounted for:

Last week, the US Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction (SIGIR) issued an audit stating that the Pentagon cannot account for 96 percent of $9.1 billion that was set aside for reconstruction and humanitarian relief in Iraq after the 2003 US-led invasion. While the audit accused the US Department of Defense (DoD), the administrator of these funds, of “lax oversight” and “weak control”—rather than outright fraud—the Iraqi government may attempt to take legal action in the coming months and recover these funds. The missing $8.7 billion is critically needed to improve basic services like water, electricity and food security amongst the most vulnerable Iraqi populations.

The Development Fund for Iraq (DFI) was created in May 2003 by the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA), the American occupation administration that handled all governmental affairs—including reconstruction and humanitarian relief—in Iraq post-invasion. On 22nd May 2003, the UN Security Council Resolution 1483 recognized the DFI under the following terms:

“The DFI shall be used in a transparent manner [by the CPA] to meet the humanitarian needs of the Iraqi people, for the economic reconstruction and repair of Iraq’s infrastructure, for the continued disarmament of Iraq, and for the costs of Iraqi civilian administration, and for other purposes benefiting the people of Iraq.”

Using the CPA as a conduit, the DoD primarily administered the DFI between 2003-2004. When the CPA was disbanded in June 2004, the Iraqi transitional government authorized the DoD to continue overseeing the DFI until December 2007.

In administering the DFI, the CPA and DoD allocated most of the funds to private American companies and contractors to implement reconstruction programmes. In this process, the DoD failed to follow the US Department of Treasury’s guidelines established for all US agencies operating in Iraq. Namely, the DoD did not create required bank accounts for the funds or designate any organization as the executive agent to manage their usage. This “breakdown in controls” made funds vulnerable to “undetected loss” and “inappropriate uses” according to the audit.

Some of the DFI funds were certainly spent in Iraq, yet the extent to which the unaccounted money was lost to waste and corruption is entirely speculative. After the 2003 invasion, “Iraq was awash in cash—in dollars and bills. [There were] piles and piles of money,” said Frank Willis, a former CPA official. More than $12 billion in cash was transferred to Iraq in the first fourteen months. According to Alan Grayson, a whistleblower working with other lawyers to further expose the CPA’s corruption, “American law was suspended, Iraqi law was suspended, and Iraq basically became a free fraud zone.” Another audit of the DFI in 2009 exposed cases of bribery, fraud and money laundering involving several DoD and CPA officials.

The SIGIR’s audit brings another alarming issue to light: The DoD is likely holding and spending DFI funds today— at least $34.3 million according the auditors’ rough estimates—although the US is no longer vested with any legal authority to do so. Since 2007, the Iraqi Ministry of Finance supposedly assumed full control over managing the DFI funds. However, the DoD cannot locate most of the DFI funds that seem to have vanished in the Iraqi government’s and Pentagon’s bureaucracies.

The DFI includes Iraqi oil and natural gas revenues, surplus funds from the UN Oil-for-Food Program (1995-2003), and frozen Iraqi assets that were seized from the previous Ba’ath government. The untraceable $8.7 billion derives from the Iraqi people and their government’s resources, rather than foreign donors or the US government. Since the audit’s findings were released, Sabah Al-Saedi, chairman of the Integrity Committee in Iraq’s parliament, has publically suggested that “Iraq should take legal action to get back huge amounts of money [that disappeared from the DFI].” He elaborated that the Iraqi government urgently needs this money “for rebuilding the country and providing services for this poor nation.”

Since the invasion, US funds have provided more than $50 billion for major reconstruction projects in Iraq. Paradoxically, many of the same humanitarian concerns from 2003 persist. Regional experts, such as Patrick Cockburn, still concur that “no country in the world needs more investment [for economic growth and humanitarian operations] than Iraq.” This begs the question: Why was the occupying force charged with overseeing the delivery of major funds earmarked for recovery in the first place?
Iraq now ranks seventh in the 2010 Failed States Index, faces an ongoing power vacuum, and has multiple vulnerable areas in dire need of humanitarian assistance. The Iraqi people continue to await the restoration of their nation’s overburdened national electricity grid, reconstruction of adequate water treatment facilities, and attention to a number of other lingering, unmet basic needs. Tensions in Iraq are still mounting as money fails to translate into tangible results or improve basic standards of living. As usual, it is the Iraqi people who must pay the price for corruption in relief programs, similar to what was experienced during the Oil-for-Food Programme established by another UN Security Council resolution (1995-2003).

This audit’s findings come at a time of waning donor support from nations which were formerly key funders of Iraq’s humanitarian sector, including the US and the United Kingdom (UK). As Mercy Corps and NCCI discussed in a recent joint policy brief, funding shortages are threatening many UN agencies’ and NGOs’ ability to continue or expand long-term humanitarian relief operations in Iraq. The audit further highlights that Iraqis did not receive adequate support for humanitarian relief and reconstruction. Donor support for Iraqi civilians, especially from the US and UK, is not only necessary; it is also an ethical obligation.

Moreover, Iraq needs more than an increase in funding. Future funding should also be characterized by a high level of accountability and transparency. Humanitarian actors must ensure that effective Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) programmes track financial transactions and assess progress of humanitarian relief operations in Iraq to prevent future mismanagement of Iraqi humanitarian relief funds on such a large scale.

http://www.iraq-businessnews.com/201...ccountability/

Re-Building Iraq with Style

Iraq Business News is always delighted to bring you the latest exciting new developments from Iraq, and it’s refreshing to see that the country’s building boom is being carefully planned and tastefully designed.

Many new architectural projects in Iraq can be credited to Dewan Architects & Engineers, founded by Iraqi-born Mohamed Al Assam in 1984. Headquartered in Abu Dhabi, the company opened an office in Baghdad in 2003.

Kadhimiya, Baghdad
In early 2010, Dewan won the first prize in the competition to develop the area surrounding the Holy Shrines in Kadhimiya, Baghdad.

This mix of historic and adapted modern structures, combined with appropriate landscaping, is intended to provide a fresh social, environmental and economic stimulus to its surroundings.

Dewan has recently been working with the various stakeholders to refine the plan and gather new ideas.



Rotana Hotel, Baghdad
Due to open in 2012, the new 250-room Rotana Hotel in Baghdad’s Green Zone is planned to be Iraq’s first truly 5-star hotel.

When complete, it is poised to be the unofficial destination of choice for affluent visitors, dignitaries and heads of state.



Karbala Hotel
Dewan has recently been awarded the contract for a major new hotel in Karbala.

Located in the old downtown area of the city, the Karbala Hotel will have stunning views over the Holy Shrines, a prestigious site that is envisaged to be a focus for religious tourism.



The Range Hotel, Karbala
In January 2010, Dewan was appointed as lead architects and consultants to another major new hotel development in Karbala.

The Range Hotel will feature a 12-storey hotel apartment complex, comprised of studio and one and two-bedroom units. The Development, with a total area in excess of 72,000 square metres, will include more than 650 apartment units and facilities, and will offer a serene and secure setting with 24-hour security in and around the development.

It is ideally located in the heart of the Holy City of Karbala, less than 1 kilometre away from the shrines most frequented by religious visitors.



Najaf City Council HQ
Located to the north-east of the Old City of Najaf, the City Council Headquarters will include a five-floor administrative area and a conference hall.

The project is a subtle blend of Islamic and contemporary architectures styles.



With Iraq’s oil revenue set to increase dramatically over the coming years, we can look forward to seeing more high-profile and top-quality developments in both the public and private sectors.

http://www.iraq-businessnews.com/201...aq-with-style/

Obama Meets with National Security Team While Iraq Fate Remains Uncertain

President Obama, determined to keep his promise to remove all U.S. combat troops from Iraq by month's end, met with his national security team Wednesday to talk about where things stand. But as violence continues to flare-- a bombing has just killed eight Iraqi soldiers north of Baghdad-- and an Iraqi government has yet to be formed, the future of Iraq's self-reliance is murky at best.

The president has tasked his deputies, from those in the Office of Management and Budget to his Secretaries of State and Defense, to participate in the discussion which could cover the gamut of issues security, financial or otherwise.

Compounding the problems in Iraq are reports that members of Al Qaeda are trying to lure some of their former allies back to the fight by offering them more money than they currently receive from the Iraqi leadership. The U.S. and Iraqi allies had successfully brought on board some of their past adversaries and turned them to the fight against insurgents. Now, Al Qaeda wants them back.

The decrepit security situation in Iraq, combined with the planned U.S. combat decrease, has raised fears among Iraqis over how much control their government can maintain over security. Iraq's foreign minister Hoshyar Zebari told the New York Times, "Our country will not be able to defend against foreign aggression for a long time."

After September 1, the U.S. will leave behind a contingent of 50,000 troops and will remain involved in diplomacy and training missions. The departure of the U.S. fighting force by that date appears immovable, regardless of Iraqi post-election disarray. General Ray Odierno, the top commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, told ABC's This Week Sunday, "I would say the numbers and our numbers of withdrawing is not linked to the governmental formation process..." he said, adding, "Our numbers are linked to the capacity that the Iraqis -- of the Iraqi security forces being able to sustain stability. And I think they are moving toward that capacity."Odierno adds that security in Iraq is indeed better than in years' past.

The changing mission in Iraq comes at a financial cost, as well. The State Department is slated to take over training the Iraqi police force after combat troops leave. However, relevant Congressional Committees have been reluctant to fulfill budgetary requests which could help fund that training, saying it's time for the Iraqis to step up and cash in on their oil reserves.

"This month we will end combat operations in Iraq," President Obama said simply Monday in a University of Texas speech. Actually doing so may not be so simple.

http://politics.blogs.foxnews.com/20...ains-uncertain

Iraq oil hub Basra hoping to see its share of wealth
Iraq (Reuters) - Old pictures hanging on the walls of restaurants show canals flowing through the handsome streets of the southern city of Basra, which Iraqis used to call "The Venice of the Middle East."

The present has little resemblance to that colourful past.

Now, Basra's criss-crossed canals are filthy pools of stagnant water filled with heaps of rubbish. Roads are damaged and only a few hours of electricity are provided every day to a city where summer temperatures top 50 degrees Celsius (122 F).

Most of Iraq's oil exports come from the fields around Basra, but residents complain they have seen little benefit.

A recent series of huge oil deals that Baghdad struck with global firms to develop its vast reserves has generated much hype as oil and service companies build bases in Iraq's desert.

Basra is struggling to accommodate the tide of activity the deals unleashed. And like the rest of Iraq, it has a long way to go until the anticipated spike in revenue has a noticeable effect on the economy and on people's daily lives.

"When we heard that foreign companies will come to work in Basra, I said to myself, now I will have the chance to prove myself and have a decent job. But later I discovered I was wrong," said 25-year-old Muntadhar Mohammed, a university graduate with a bachelors' degree in computer science.

"Iraqi officials know that we dream of having a better life after toppling Saddam, so they started to sell those dreams to us," said Mohammed, who runs an Internet cafe in Basra. "But all their promises of having a better life are only a mirage."

More than seven years after the ouster of dictator Saddam Hussein, many Iraqis were betting on the wealth those oil deals could bring to shake off a legacy of violence and poverty after years of sectarian slaughter and economic decline.

To fulfil the promise, Iraq needs to boost its output and export levels to generate the cash needed to rebuild.

"You would need to have first the revenue and second you would need to have the institutional framework to channel the revenue to the proper sectors and to the rest of the population," said Leila Benali, Middle East and Africa director for IHS Cambridge Energy Research Associates.

"And that is something which a lot of exporting countries have struggled with," she said.

Recent protests against crippling power shortages in Basra and other cities, mainly in the deprived Shi'ite south, highlighted Iraqis' frustrations and the government's failure to provide basic services despite the anticipated oil wealth.

BATTERED BASRA BUZZING

Basra is weary after years of conflict. It was the front line in the war with Iran in the 1980s and more recently was in the grip of feuding Shi'ite militias, pushed out by U.S. and British-backed Iraqi government troops in 2008.

"Basra is going to have some serious growing pains over the next few years. The infrastructure is not there yet. The process for bringing equipment from Kuwait is opaque and bureaucratic," said Kyle McEneaney, who heads the Middle East practice at Ergo, an emerging markets consultancy.

"Basra is Iraq's second city and commercial link with the world; still, there aren't a great many places to stay in town."

Despite its dilapidated power and water infrastructure and scarcity of flights in and out of the city, Basra is buzzing, with investors, oil executives, contractors and consultants flooding its few hotels.

The oil deals Baghdad signed with global firms aim to boost crude output capacity to 12 million barrels per day (bpd) from 2.5 million bpd. That could put Iraq at par with oil powerhouse Saudi Arabia and shake the balance of power in the region.

The workload for oil and service companies is unprecedented. Iraq's ability to handle the work, with fragile security, widespread corruption and entrenched bureaucracy, is doubtful.

"There are thousands of tons of iron and cement needed for these contracts. There will be an influx of equipment into the country," said an executive who attended a recent meeting of the oil ministry and foreign companies in Baghdad.

"I don't think they know what they will be dealing with; it's huge."

GRAND PLANS

Iraq has grand plans to rebuild but lacks the funds and would need foreign investment if it wants to meet its ambitious production targets.

Old equipment and decaying pipelines can be seen at the southern fields of Rumaila and Zubair, among those included in the development contracts awarded to global firms such as BP, Royal Dutch Shell, China's CNPC and Italy's Eni.

Oil officials and engineers are trying to stitch together decades-old facilities and pipes while grappling with declining production rates and technical problems at the fields.

Foreign oil firms have a long list of complaints: insecurity, corruption, inconsistent customs procedures and bureaucratic hurdles to getting visas and setting up offices.

A two-day meeting in Baghdad between oil firms and government officials last month produced no clear steps to clear the bottlenecks, executives said.

Complaints about a lack of dock space at Basra's Umm Qasr port prompted Iraq to seek a deal with neighbouring Kuwait to open a border crossing to ease the inflow of equipment.

"Iraq is aware of its limitations, and is taking steps to address them, for example, in contracting to upgrade and augment its offshore export terminals," McEneaney said. "But the country certainly has a lot on its plate."

http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKTRE67919720100810

Ministry of Oil: Iraq's most important exporters of gas to Europe in two years

An official source at the oil ministry said Iraq would be the most important exporters to Europe via pipeline Nabokovi next two years.

The Director of Legal Section of the Department of contracts and licenses the Ministry of Oil Sabah Abdul -Kadhim Saadi reporter Iraq during the next two years will be able to produce natural gas and could be Iraq's most important exporters to Europe through the Nabucco gas pipeline.

He said Saadi said Iraq will be put through October next three fields, gas investment on international companies, will be the criteria of competition between companies will be the peak of production and wages for every barrel of gas equivalent, and the volume of domestic consumption will be between 10-50 % of production at the most, according to need power stations

http://al-iraqnews.net/new/economic-news/20764.html

Sub: Iraq will not reach a result with the national prime minister has maintained that

A member of the National Coalition Jalaluddin al-Saghir, Thursday , the coalition, Iraqi did not reach an understanding with the coalition of state law regarding access to the prime minister, So they made will not reach a conclusion with the National Coalition, noting that the talks with the law did not reach a dead end , but would So if it sticks Nuri al-Maliki.

The small Agency (Voices of Iraq) that the coalition if Iraq did not reach an understanding with the coalition of state law regarding access to the prime minister, So they made will not be able to access the results with the National Coalition on this post, CAST National is the only one who can secure a national consensus by obtaining Prime minister.

He added that it was not open to the rule of law for the selection of an alternative candidate for prime minister, the National Coalition is expected to end the coalition and Iraqi rule of law, the conversation came to a standstill will start national movements to devote his talks with one of the lists.

He said talks with the state law did not reach a dead end, but would if it sticks to the rule of law -Maliki, but that concession for Maliki as prime minister would return things to what they were going to proceed from the understanding and in the formation of the government.

The little that things are limited to three options, either to succeed, the option of Americans did the alliance of Iraq with the rule of law, most probably, who was not any success to date amid crisis existing between the parties, and the second option is to return a coalition of law to the National Coalition provides an alternative candidate for Al-Maliki, or resort to the Iraqi National Coalition and the Kurdistan Alliance to form a government.

He noted that the coalition and Iraq's unity and harmony will Ilthakan this grand coalition , which will include all political elements.

http://radionawa.com/ar/NewsDetailN....271&LinkID=158

Obeidi : Homeland Security will raise the proportion of 100% and 65 % with the external withdrawal

Defence Minister Abdel Qader Mohammed al-Obeidi for the ministry to develop a plan to be Iraqi army is able to raise the proportion of Homeland Security 100% in the country, the end of 2011, as well as their ability to maintain security against external threats by 65%. This came in a speech during the al-Obeidi Leadership Conference II, the ready, convened by the army chief of staff at the Ministry of Defense in Baghdad.

Obeidi said that "the Ministry of Defence and has developed a grand plan extended now being implemented to increase the ability of forces to raise the proportion of Homeland Security 100%, as well as their capacity to maintain security against external threats by 65% until the end of 2011 with the withdrawal of the U.S. total from Iraq."

Is noteworthy that the Iraqi Chief of Staff Gen. Babacar Zebari said yesterday in a statement during a press conference to assess the readiness of security forces to protect the country after the withdrawal of U.S. forces to the Iraqi military "will not be able" to take over the security file in full before the completion of its ranks by 2020.

He attributed the al-Obeidi "loss of the rest of the security of the external borders of the country to the lack of integration of the capacity of the Iraqi air force."

During the conference, which was attended by the Commander in Chief of the armed forces of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki and Interior Minister Jawad al-Bolani as well as squad leaders, the Iraqi army, Defense Minister that the Iraqi ground forces in his ministry, "the backbone of the military and security forces Bceccheladtha and its directorates diverse."

He added that "The Defense Ministry has built 40 military battalion Boutrip in five years between 2003 and 2008, equipment and weapons to enable it to perform its functions successfully and under different circumstances."

http://www.uragency.net/index.php?aa=news&id22=10369