Iraq signs a deal with a Norway-led consortium for building 2 solar power plants of 525 MW capacity.
Scatec will help in building the solar plants in the south of Baghdad. The cost of the project is estimated to be around $500Â million. One plant will be built in Babel and the other one in Karbala.
Iraq is the second-largest producer in the OPEC region but still, the country faces serious energy threats and power cuts.
“It is a step towards the development of durable energy,” said, Oil Minister Ihssan Ismail.
Abdelaziz Atribi, Scatec’s Vice President for the Middle East and North Africa, told AFP construction should begin “as quickly as possible” and take around a year.
The consortium also includes Egypt’s Orascom Construction and Iraq’s private Albilal Group.
Iraq recently signed another deal with UAE’s Masdar to develop five solar photovoltaic (PV) projects in the country with a combined capacity of 1 gigawatt (GW).
With these deals, Iraq aims to add 7,500 MW to its grid by 2023. Crude accounts for 90% of Baghdad’s revenue.
As of now, the country generates 16,000 MW of electricity, which is short than the estimated 24,000-MW to meet the requirements of Iraq’s population which as per the UN is expected to double by 2050.
Currently, Iraq is highly dependent on neighboring countries like Iran for gas and electricity.
