The deal, which aims to increase the electricity supply in Iraq, and push Baghdad to be less dependent on Iran’s energy imports, was signed last year with the Arab Gulf Cooperation Council Interconnection Authority (GCCIA). Under the plan that has yet to be implemented, Iraq was slated to import 500 megawatts of electricity from Sunni Arab Gulf countries on the payroll of the GCCIA before this summer.
This reiteration of support comes as a damning economic crisis and severe shortage of electricity during the hot summer months has pushed Iraqis to the streets in protest in southern Iraqi provinces in recent days, demanding improved services and an end to corruption.
“The Government of Iraq, Gulf Cooperation Council, and United States have renewed their full support for the Gulf Cooperation Council Interconnection Authority (GCCIA) project to connect the electricity grids of Iraq and the GCC, “ reads a joint statement by the Iraqi government, US, and GCC released on Thursday. “The United States is committed to facilitating this project and providing support where needed.”
The statement highlighted that the project will provide Iraqis with more electricity during the economic crisis, especially the “southern provinces” in Iraq.
Iraq has long suffered from chronic outages and shortages of electricity, in a country where summer temperatures reach 50 degrees Celsius.
Rampant electricity shortages have in past years been a rallying call for protestors, most notably in the summer of 2018.
War, corruption, insecurity and lack of investment have all together contributed to a deteriorating grid, leaving Iraqis at times with just five hours of national electricity per day. Privately owned generators set up in neighborhoods try to supplement the lost hours, making Iraqis pay twice for electricity.
To make up for the shortage in electricity production, Iraq has been importing electricity and gas to power its electricity stations from neighboring Iran, much to the ire of Washington, which has imposed crippling economic sanctions on Tehran.
Washington has granted Iraq several waivers to continue imports of Iranian energy without penalty, but ultimately expects it to gradually reduce its reliance on Iranian gas and electricity imports.
The current waiver, Iraq’s ninth, gives the country 120 days to continue its energy imports without financial penalties for the trade that has otherwise been banned by the US, after it reimposed sanctions on Iran in November 2018, after Washington withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal.
Iran exports 1200-1500 megawatts of electricity to Iraq on a daily basis, in addition to 38 million cubic meters of natural gas to feed several of Iraq’s power stations, according to Sayyid Hamid Hosseini, secretary general of Iran-Iraq Joint Chamber of Commerce.
Iraq has also signed deals with the German giant Siemens and the US giant General Electric to overhaul its outdated grid.
