ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraq’s national investment commission on Sunday signed an investment license with French energy giant TotalEnergies to develop a power plant with a capacity of 1,000 megawatts south of the country.
Haider Makkia, head of the commission, said during the inking ceremony that the project marks “the first investment opportunity” to construct a solar power station “within the government’s plan to diversify its renewable energy resources.”
The power generated in the plant, located in western Basra’s Artawi area, will be added to the national power grid, according to Makkia.
Iraq’s electricity ministry announced the project in April after signing the lease contract with TotalEnergies. The ministry said at the time that the plant will contribute to supplying the southern area with clean energy for approximately 350,000 houses.
Despite its large oil and gas reserves, Iraq suffers from chronic electricity shortages, especially felt when summer temperatures reach over 50 degrees Celsius.
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani has repeatedly described improving the country’s energy sector as one of the main priorities of his cabinet, stating on multiple occasions that Baghdad seeks to achieve self-sufficiency in gas and end the import of the natural resource within the next five years.
Baghdad and TotalEnergies in July put pen to paper on a $27 billion contract to develop Iraq’s oil, gas, and renewable energies sectors, in a major step towards achieving gas self-sufficiency.
