BAGHDAD, March 17 (NNN-XINHUA) — Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein met here on Sunday with Turkish Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Alparslan Bayraktar to discuss bilateral cooperation in electricity, natural gas, and oil sectors.
According to a statement from the Iraqi Foreign Ministry, the two officials explored ways to encourage Turkish companies to invest in Iraq’s oil and gas sector.
They also discussed the potential for Türkiye to supply electricity to Iraq to address seasonal shortages and stressed the importance of expediting the electricity interconnection project by completing the necessary technical preparations as soon as possible, read the statement.
The two sides agreed to double the amount of electricity that Türkiye will provide to Iraq, which will help meet part of the energy needs of Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan region and the city of Mosul, it said.
Furthermore, they discussed the possibility of importing gas from Türkiye to meet the needs of Iraq’s power plants and ways to strengthen cooperation in this area, the statement added.
Earlier this month, the United States rescinded Baghdad’s waiver to purchase electricity from Iran, as part of its “maximum pressure” campaign against Tehran.
Decades of conflict have left Iraq struggling with chronic electricity shortages. Despite its oil wealth, the country remains heavily dependent on gas imports from Iran to power its grid. — NNN-XINHUA