Iraq has reached an agreement with French energy major TotalEnergies to hold a 30 per cent stake in the company's $27 billion worth of projects in the country.
In 2021, Iraq signed an agreement with TotalEnergies to develop oil and gas and renewable energy projects worth $27 billion.
While confirming all the terms of the development and production contract signed in 2021, TotalEnergies and the Iraqi government "have, through exchanges in the past months, jointly defined the necessary conditions and mutual insurances to move forward with the Gas Growth Integrated Project (GGIP)", TotalEnergies said in a statement on Wednesday.
Both sides have agreed on a 30 per cent stake for the Basrah Oil Company (BOC) in the GGIP, while TotalEnergies has "invited QatarEnergy to take a 25 per cent stake in the GGIP in agreement with the Iraqi government", the French company said.
TotalEnergies, which will hold a 45 per cent stake, said the "continuity of the voice of Iraq on the contract ... is a strong and positive signal for foreign investment in the country".
In 2021, TotalEnergies had said it would make an initial investment of $10 billion in the country. However, the projects stalled after Iraq reportedly wanted to take a 40 per cent stake, as opposed to the 25 per cent to 30 per cent stake proposed by TotalEnergies.
In February, Iraq’s oil ministry said it was keen to strike an agreement with TotalEnergies, amid reports that the energy company was planning to exit the Arab country.
“We have no problems with TotalEnergies and our relations are good and growing,” a representative for the ministry told The National on February 2.
The the GGIP's main purpose is to enhance the development of Iraq’s natural resources to improve the country’s electricity supply, according to the statement.
As per the agreements signed in 2021, TotalEnergies and its partners will invest approximately $10 billion to recover flared gas on three oilfields to supply gas to power generation plants, and to build a seawater treatment plant for providing water injection for pressure maintenance to increase regional oil production, as an alternative to the use of fresh water from rivers and aquifers.
TotalEnergies will also develop a 1-gigawatt solar power plant to supply electricity to the Basrah regional grid. In agreement with Iraqi authorities, the French company will invite Saudi Arabia's Acwa Power to join this solar project, it said.
Iraq, Opec’s second-largest producer, depends on oil revenue to meet 90 per cent of government expenditure.
The country exports about 3.3 million barrels of oil per day, while production in the semi-autonomous Kurdish region amounts to more than 450,000 bpd.
On Tuesday, Iraq's government also struck a deal with authorities in the Kurdistan region to restart oil exports, a major step forward in the long-running dispute over rights to develop and export energy.
The deal is a win for Baghdad, which wanted to assert its right to manage Kurdistan's oil resources since the 2003 US-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein and gave the Kurds more autonomy.
Baghdad said the agreement with Kurdistan would be implemented immediately.
“This agreement underlines the serious and sincere desire by the federal government and the Kurdistan Regional Government [KRG] to face all the problems and obstacles that we inherited," Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al Sudani said.
“Halting the export of the region’s oil harms Iraq’s revenues,” he said.
Iraq’s oil revenue crossed $60 billion in the first half of last year amid high oil and gas prices.
On Sunday, Iraq's oil ministry in line with its Opec+ allies announced it was implementing a voluntary output cut of 211,000 bpd to “face the challenges facing the global oil market, to strike a balance between supply and demand and market stability”.
It followed a similar move by other Opec+ members including Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, Oman and others, who collectively announced cuts of more than 1.1 million bpd from May until the end of the year.
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
The specs: 2018 Maserati GranTurismo/GranCabrio
Price, base Dh485,000 (GranTurismo) and Dh575,000 (GranCabrio)
Engine 4.7L V8
Transmission Six-speed automatic
Power 460hp @ 7,000rpm
Torque 520Nm @ 4,750rpm
Fuel economy, combined 14.3L (GranTurismo) and 14.5L (GranCabrio) / 100km
Global Fungi Facts
• Scientists estimate there could be as many as 3 million fungal species globally
• Only about 160,000 have been officially described leaving around 90% undiscovered
• Fungi account for roughly 90% of Earth's unknown biodiversity
• Forest fungi help tackle climate change, absorbing up to 36% of global fossil fuel emissions annually and storing around 5 billion tonnes of carbon in the planet's topsoil
SPECS
Nissan 370z Nismo
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Transmission: seven-speed automatic
Power: 363hp
Torque: 560Nm
Price: Dh184,500
JUDAS AND THE BLACK MESSIAH
Directed by: Shaka King
Starring: Daniel Kaluuya, Lakeith Stanfield, Jesse Plemons
Four stars
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
The specs: Rolls-Royce Cullinan
Price, base: Dh1 million (estimate)
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbo V12
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 563hp @ 5,000rpm
Torque: 850Nm @ 1,600rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 15L / 100km
SPECS
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WOMAN AND CHILD
Director: Saeed Roustaee
Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi
Rating: 4/5
if you go
The flights
Flydubai offers three daily direct flights to Sarajevo and, from June, a daily flight from Thessaloniki from Dubai. A return flight costs from Dhs1,905 including taxes.
The trip
The Travel Scientists are the organisers of the Balkan Ride and several other rallies around the world. The 2018 running of this particular adventure will take place from August 3-11, once again starting in Sarajevo and ending a week later in Thessaloniki. If you’re driving your own vehicle, then entry start from €880 (Dhs 3,900) per person including all accommodation along the route. Contact the Travel Scientists if you wish to hire one of their vehicles.
The distance learning plan
Spring break will be from March 8 - 19
Public school pupils will undergo distance learning from March 22 - April 2. School hours will be 8.30am to 1.30pm
Staff will be trained in distance learning programmes from March 15 - 19
Teaching hours will be 8am to 2pm during distance learning
Pupils will return to school for normal lessons from April 5
2024%20Dubai%20Marathon%20Results
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EWomen%E2%80%99s%20race%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3E1.%20Tigist%20Ketema%20(ETH)%202hrs%2016min%207sec%0D%3Cbr%3E2.%20Ruti%20Aga%20(ETH)%202%3A18%3A09%0D%3Cbr%3E3.%20Dera%20Dida%20(ETH)%202%3A19%3A29%0D%3Cbr%3EMen's%20race%3A%0D%3Cbr%3E1.%20Addisu%20Gobena%20(ETH)%202%3A05%3A01%0D%3Cbr%3E2.%20Lemi%20Dumicha%20(ETH)%202%3A05%3A20%0D%3Cbr%3E3.%20DejeneMegersa%20(ETH)%202%3A05%3A42%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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United States
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China
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UAE
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Norway
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Canada
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The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
SPECS
Engine: Two-litre four-cylinder turbo
Power: 235hp
Torque: 350Nm
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Price: From Dh167,500 ($45,000)
On sale: Now
'Operation Mincemeat'
Director: John Madden
Cast: Colin Firth, Matthew Macfayden, Kelly Macdonald and Penelope Wilton
Rating: 4/5
And%20Just%20Like%20That...
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