Despite the announcement of the Ministry of Electricity on the stability of nutrition in Baghdad after the lifting of excesses represented by daylight, the suffering of citizens throughout the country continued with the high temperature and low feeding hours to less than ten hours a day.
As the ministry’s sources talk about many reasons behind the worsening electricity crisis years ago, another reason was added this year for the crisis: Iran cut off the energy line, under the pretext of the financial dues that Iraq delayed to pay.
An official in the electricity sector disclosed the visit of Minister Qassem al-Fahdawi and a senior delegation from the ministry to Tehran to reach a settlement with the Iranian side and restart the power line.
The coordinator between the Ministry of Electricity and the Council of the province of Baghdad, Ahmed Musa that “the Iranian side has and without introductions to cut the line that equips Iraq with a thousand and 200 megawatts, a large amount affecting most of the provinces.”
Moussa believes that other factors in addition to the exit of the Iranian line, have to do with the problem of electricity this summer, including “the impact of high temperatures on the efficiency of power plants and transmission lines, in addition to the increasing demand for energy because of the heat wave.”
“The war against Da’ash brought about 6,000 megawatts of electricity and caused the destruction of new power plants even before they started, including the Baiji plant, which produces 1,000 megawatts,” said Ahmed Moussa, who is also the media official at the General Electricity Distribution Company.
“The capital of Baghdad alone needs about 5,000 MW, which is impossible under the current circumstances due to the problems experienced by the Ministry of Electricity, which is reflected in the level of processing.”
The Ministry of Electricity complains that the funds allocated to it from the country’s financial budget are insufficient to meet its needs for the maintenance and processing of energy, as well as the funds due to the Iranian side.
Despite government subsidies for electricity consumption of 94 per cent according to government data, this has not lessened the resentment and criticism of the Government, as subsidies provide only a fraction of the citizens’ need for electricity and have to rely on private generators With high wages to meet their energy needs.
The Iraqi authorities fear the outbreak of large-scale demonstrations these days as a result of the electricity crisis similar to that which started in the southern province of Basra in July 2015, and led to the death of young man Muntadr Hilfi, followed by a wave of large demonstrations including Baghdad and most of the provinces of the center and the south.
