Iraq's Basra Investment Commission recently announced that it has signed a major agreement with France's Total Energy to build a massive 1,000 MW solar power plant in the Basra region. The move marks a solid step in Iraq's drive to diversify energy sources and achieve sustainable development in the energy sector.

The total value of the solar power plant project is expected to reach $820 million and will be implemented in phases, with the entire project expected to be completed within 36 months, the committee revealed in a statement. This project not only responds to the growing demand for electricity in Iraq, but is also in line with the Iraqi government's long-term plan to commit to expanding the use of renewable energy.

Notably, 2023 Iraq's Ministry of Electricity has actively sought to partner with major players, including Total Energy, to build more power plants. This agreement with Total Energy, as well as a previous contract with China National Petroleum Corporation to build a 750 MW power plant, are part of Iraq's larger national plan. The plan aims to produce 7,500 megawatts of solar energy by 2030 and eventually achieve a target of 12,000 megawatts of solar capacity.

Iraqi Minister of Electricity Ziad Ali Fadl recently revealed that the solar projects that have been launched in Iraq are progressing well, with 40 per cent of them nearing completion. He stressed that the government plans to significantly increase electricity production through these projects in order to meet the growing demand for electricity in the country. Although Iraq has a capacity of 27,000 megawatts (MW) of electricity generation in 2024, the actual demand is already as high as 48,000 MW. In response, Minister Fadl announced that solar projects totalling 1,750 MW have been launched in Karbala, Muthanna and Basra governorates in a bid to gradually close the gap between supply and demand. Editor/Xu Shengpeng