Shafaq News – Baghdad

Iraq’s electricity production has increased to 28,000 megawatts (MW), up from 19,000 MW in 2022, Electricity Minister Ziyad Ali Fadhil announced on Tuesday during a cabinet meeting in Baghdad.

According to an official statement, Fadhil highlighted 15,000 MW in ongoing projects, including solar, thermal, and combined-cycle plants. The first phase of plant expansions is expected to add 10,000 MW, while contracts worth 15,000 MW have been signed with Germany’s Siemens and 24,000 MW with US-based General Electric as part of a broader strategy to end chronic power shortages.

The cabinet approved a new “economic operation” model aimed at improving efficiency and reducing costs, endorsed Siemens Energy’s project implementation under the 2025 budget, and granted Fadhil exceptional powers to bypass standard contracting procedures to speed up delivery.

Support for private-sector power projects was also approved, including exemptions from Cabinet Resolution 245 of 2019 and guarantees to purchase electricity from major plants, such as Al-Faw (3,000 MW), Kirkuk (1,500 MW), Al-Najaf (1,500 MW), Baghdad/Abu Ghraib (3,000 MW), and Al-Yusufiyah (1,800 MW).

Additionally, the cabinet authorized the Oil Ministry’s Midland Refineries Company to bypass procurement rules and purchase liquid nitrogen directly from the market instead of through the Ministry of Industry and Minerals.