Iraq has signed a contract to buy 250 megawatts of electricity per day from UAE's Oilfield Services, the Electricity Ministry said. Iraq's has earlier announced US$7 billion worth of major deals to help plug the country's electricity shortage.
The ministry signed preliminary deals with General Electric, Siemens and another company to generate 9,800 megawatts of electricity, Karim Waheed, the Electricity Minister, told Reuters.
Electricity shortages are a major issue, as due to incessant load shedding frustrations mount in summer and often spark street protests.
Ships from UAE are expected to reach the port in Iraq's oil-rich southern city of Basra within a few weeks, and the plants will be connected to the grid by July 31, the ministry said.
Turkish ships are already docked at the port in Basra, which supply 270 MW per day to the national grid. Iraqi demand for electricity peaked at 15,000 MW last year, but the oil-producing nation managed to provide less than half of that.
