Q&A: Ali Zuhair Karim, director general for southern electricity transmission

BASRA - Summer heat in Iraq brings a season of peak electricity demand as everyone runs their air conditioners, challenging a power grid that often fails to provide consistent service even in milder months.

This summer, however, parts of Basra are receiving up to 20 hours per day of power, according to Eng. Ali Zuhair Karim, the head of electricity transmission in southern Iraq.

Improving service is a function of projects that have been years in the making, Karim said, which are enabling Iraq to compensate for a drop in imports from Iran.

In an interview at his office in Basra, Karim told Iraq Oil Report about the key infrastructure developments that are supporting the grid, as well as the status of efforts to import electricity for southern Iraq from the Gulf Cooperation Council Interconnection Authority (GCCIA).

The full transcript is available below for subscribers.