The Iran regime has signed a five-year contract to continue the export of natural gas for use in Iraq’s power generating plants.
The announcement comes as Iraq's ministry of electricity announced a finalized agreement on Wednesday to import up to 50 million cubic meters per day of the vital fuel. Before this, Iraq had been procuring approximately half of that amount from Iranian suppliers.
Iran’s national gas company has been provisioning their neighbor for the last 10 years, as Iraq has long suffered domestic production problems due to corruption and inadequate infrastructure.
Most of the natural gas that Iraq imports is used to produce power for an unstable and maintenance-prone electrical grid. Service outages are common amid the country’s growing consumption and many residents frequently must rely on private generators during times of disruption.
Including the electricity that Iraq directly purchases from Iran, the Islamic republic is reported to be responsible for supplying nearly a quarter of the country's total power use.
This relationship has often brought criticism from Washington because the imports and their payments are subject to U.S. sanctions. The government in Baghdad must ask for waivers from the State Department to complete their purchases.
The Biden administration has strongly suggested that the Iraqis find other ways solve their production problems.
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