Iraq to double Turkish electricity imports

18 February 2025

Iraq's Electricity Ministry has discussed plans to double the amount of electricity it imports from Turkiye to 600MW.

It is understood that Iraqi Electricity Minister Ziyad Ali Fadhil and a Turkish delegation headed by Undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Peris Akinci, met on 17 February.

"The two parties discussed accelerating procedures to double the amount of energy imported from Turkey to 600MW, instead of the current 300MW, and rehabilitating the Jezreh – Kesk transmission line to accommodate the increase in the quantities of energy supplied," Iraq's Ministry of Electricity said in a statement reported by the Iraqi News Agency.

The two countries also reached an agreement for "strategic" energy production projects with the establishment of several new stations and transmission lines.

The Turkish delegation confirmed Ankara's commitment "to work quickly to increase the amount of energy through the interconnection lines to 600MW after obtaining the approvals of the European Union". 

Iraq periodically suffers from power outages, especially during the summer months, when increased cooling requirements overwhelm its power plants and electricity grid.  

The country had a total installed power generation capacity of about 30,000MW as of the end of 2021, according to data published by the International Renewable Energy Agency (Irena).

However, it is understood that operational capacity is significantly lower and is about 6,000MW short compared with summer peak demand, with Iraq relying on Iran for an average of 1,200MW of electricity annually to augment supply.

Earlier this month, US-headquartered GE Vernova said it completed the upgrades of “several key” power plants in Iraq.

The overall upgrade project covers 46 gas turbines across 12 power plants, adding up to 500MW to Iraq’s national grid before the summer of 2025.

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Jennifer Aguinaldo
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