Eying self-sufficiency, Iraq inaugurates new refinery in Karbala

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Iraq’s premier on Saturday inaugurated a new refinery in the southern province in a bid to reduce reliance on imported petroleum products.

Prime Minister Mohammad Shia’ Al-Sudani along with top energy officials toured the new oil facility, which was built in accordance with international green standards, according to a statement from the premier’s office.

With a capacity of refining 140,000 barrels of oil per day, the refinery is able to fulfill 60% to 70% of domestic needs, according to the press release.

The refinery was built by a South Korean company, Hyundai. It can produce nine million liters of fuel daily, while the country needs 15 million liters a day, according to Oil Minister Hayan Abdel Ghani.

As the second largest oil producer within OPEC, the oil cartel that regulates coordination between oil producers, Iraq still heavily relies on imported oil products because it lacks modern facilities to meet local demand.

The facility, equipped with modern technology, is the first to be built since the 1980s with such production capacity, according to the minister.

Iraq derives 90 percent of its revenues from the sale of oil.

The inauguration of the refinery comes as Iraq recently pledged to take tougher measures to combat the adverse effects of climate change, as it is the fifth most vulnerable country in the world.

In its climate conference held in mid-March, the prime minister vowed to invest in renewable energy in order to reduce reliance on hydrocarbons.