ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani on Sunday looked into ways to increase the country’s electricity production, hours after the United States rescinded a key waiver allowing Iraq to import energy from Iran.
In a meeting he held with representatives from Iraq’s oil and electricity ministries, Sudani urged “following up on the implementation of oil sector projects and reviewing the plan in place to secure electricity for next summer,” read a statement from the premier’s office.
Earlier in the day, the US rescinded a waiver that permitted Iraq to purchase electricity from Iran.
Iraq is heavily reliant on Iranian gas imports to support its electricity production. Previous waivers from Washington have allowed Baghdad to bypass American sanctions on Tehran as a short-term stopgap until it is able to wean itself off of Iran for its energy needs.
The prime minister’s office added on Sunday that work would begin on completing a gas transmission line from power stations in Iraq’s southernmost Basra province, to a temporary processing platform. Agreements with contractors would also be signed swiftly to expedite the project, the statement noted.
The Iraqi government additionally decided to extend a new 40-kilometer gas pipeline from al-Mahmoudiyah district south of Baghdad, to the city of Bismayah southeast of the Iraqi capital. The pipeline would enable the Bismayah power station to operate at full capacity during the summer.
The waiver’s end comes after US President Donald Trump had restored the maximum pressure campaign on Iran in early February, to drive Tehran’s oil exports down to zero. Trump then also tasked the US Secretary of State with “modifying or rescinding existing sanctions waivers” that provide economic or financial relief to Iran, including the waiver for Iraq’s energy imports.
A US State Department spokesperson told Rudaw on Sunday that Washington is hoping that the Iraqi government will start benefiting from the natural gas capabilities of the Kurdistan Region after the waiver. The move would reduce its dependence on Iranian gas.
A day prior on Sunday, an Iraqi government spokesperson, Bassem al-Awadi, told Rudaw that Baghdad had all necessary preparations in place in case the US revoked its waiver.
