Loan Agreement: December 28, 2022Japanese Oda Loan • January 18th, 2023
Contract Type FiledJanuary 18th, 2023The oil sector is the largest industry, accounting for 45.7% of the GDP and 87.3% of the government revenue, and the single most important source of foreign exchange earnings in Iraq (World Bank). The country has proven crude oil reserves of 145 billion barrels, making it fourth in the world. Its crude oil production reached 3.97 million barrels per day (BPD) (OPEC) in 2021 and is projected to further increase. Regarding Iraq's petroleum refining sector, the existing 14 refineries have suffered significantly falls in their capacity due to wartime damage and deterioration over years of service. In addition, the Baiji Refinery, a major refinery in northern Iraq, was suspended due to the activities by Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) since June 2014. Due to this situation, Iraq's refining capacity is limited at approximately 1,120,000 BPD (OPEC). These factors have led to huge supply-demand imbalances in the consumer petroleum product markets. For example, the domestic supply-d