Iraq closes major deal with Total to develop oil, gas, and energy projects

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Iraqi government announced on Sunday it had signed four contracts with the French company Total to develop oil, gas, and energy projects in the country.

A statement from the government valued the cost of the projects at $27 billion and asserted there would be a profit margin of $95 billion.

The government said that the first project includes developing the Artawi oil field, along with providing cutting-edge technology on site, training for local staff, and more job opportunities for Iraqis.

Production at the Artawi field would average around 85,000 barrels per day and reach a peak of 210,000, the statement added.

The second project, it said, includes constructing a gas storage facility with a capacity of 600 million standard square feet to salvage the otherwise flared gas that can be used as fuel at power stations across the country.

This would reduce Iraq's reliance on gas imports from neighboring countries, particularly Iran, to power its electric grid.

The second project is a facility dedicated to producing liquefied petroleum gas, estimated at 3000 tons per day for the local market.

The third project is a water treatment plant with a design capacity of 7.5 million barrels of water per day and a pipeline network.

The fourth project includes constructing a solar power plant to produce electricity at less than 45 percent of the cost of energy production from current power stations. The production capacity is expected to be around 1,000 megawatts.