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Politics

Iraq grapples with power shortages and Iran sanctions as summer looms

The expiration of a U.S. sanctions waiver on Iranian electricity imports is complicating Baghdad's balancing act between Tehran and Washington, while the government scrambles for power supply ahead of peak demand season.

Workers from the Southern Projects Commission of Iraq's State Company for Oil Projects assemble a pipeline designed to carry regassified LNG imported via the Khor al-Zubair port in Basra to power stations in February 2025. (ALI AL-AQILY/Iraq Oil Report)

KRG plan responds to smuggling allegations

Kurdistan region announces formation of an oil security force and a ministerial committee to monitor oil and fuel trade, and affirms oil exports are only valid through northern pipeline.

Local oil politics stall parliament

Unresolved disagreements over the control of Iraq’s oil and the distribution of revenue have stopped the new parliament, before it can even start.

KRG denies alleged oil smuggling to Iran

Renewed war of words between Baghdad and Erbil, sparked by The New York Times report on crude smuggling, could escalate ongoing feud over oil sector control.

From diplomat to oilman: Khalilzad returns to Iraq

The former U.S. ambassador has officially landed in the Iraqi oil patch in a controversial move that complicates Arab-Kurd relations and appears to undercut the American policy he once promoted.

Zalmay Khalilzad’s take on Iraq – Part 1

The former U.S. Ambassador to Iraq runs a consulting firm focused on Iraq investments and has just been named to Norwegian oil firm DNO, whose Kurdish projects have stoked controversy. He talks to Iraq Oil Report.

Khalilzad nominated to DNO board

Former American ambassador to Iraq, Afghanistan and the UN to join board of Norwegian firm, the biggest producer in Iraqi Kurdistan.