(MENAFN- Jordan News Agency) Amman, Sept 6 (Petra)-During a virtual meeting held by the Iraqi Business Council (IBC) in Amman on Saturday evening, the Iraqi Oil Minister, Ihsan Abdul-Jabbar Ismail, spoke on the projects and investment opportunities in his country's oil and gas sector.
The minister called on Iraqi expats to engage in the country's economic development process, and have a stake in investment projects scheduled to be implemented in the coming years.
Continuing: "The Iraqi economy has witnessed strong shocks in the past period due to the decline in oil prices, the Covid-19 pandemic crisis, as well as the global economic downturn."
Discussing future projects, an initial understanding was reached with the Italian energy company "Eni," currently operating the Zubair field, which is now producing 500 thousand barrels per day and expected to reach 700 thousand in 2027, the minister noted.
Moreover, understandings were struck to establish a refinery in Al-Zubair to produce 300 thousand barrels in its final stage and 150 thousand barrels at the beginning of the project, which has an investment volume of $4 billion over a period of four years, according to the minister.
In turn, the IBC's head, Dr. Majid Sa'adi, said the Iraqi expats' cash, which is estimated at $300 billion, is a "strong" opportunity to stimulate their return to the country, provided that investment obstacles are removed and the challenges facing business owners are addressed.
Large foreign companies will not enter Iraq unless Iraqi business owners invest in the country as a local partner is needed in this regard, to provide sustainability and success for their business, according to Sa'adi.
Iraqi business owners are looking forward to the new Iraqi government, chaired by Mustafa Kazemi to provide an attractive investment climate to attract Iraqi investors from abroad, he noted.
IBC brings under its umbrella 3,700 companies, which are interested to invest in Iraq in various fields, especially in the refineries and gas sector, said Sa'adi.
AG
06/09/2020 19:38:30

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