Iraq signs an ODA Loan agreement with JICA for Basrah Refinery Upgrading Project
Shafaq News/ On Wednesday, the Government of Iraq signed a loan agreement with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) at the Ministry of Finance in Baghdad.
The ODA (Official Development Assistance) loan amounting to approximately USD 1.2 billion will be used for Basrah Refinery Upgrading Project.
The Finance Minister, Taif Sami Muhammad, and Yoneda Gen, Chief Representative of JICA Iraq Office, signed the loan agreement in the presence of Masamoto Kenichi, Chargés d'Affaires of the Japanese Embassy of Iraq.
The agreed loan, named "Basrah Refinery Upgrading Project (VI), "is the fourth tranche of the Basra Refinery Upgrading Project.
The project aims to increase the quantity and quality of oil products, including gasoline, diesel, and kerosene, by installing a new refining plant called Fluid Catalytic Cracking (FCC) Complex in Basrah Refinery, one of the biggest oil refineries currently operational in Iraq.
Iraq has the world's fifth-largest proven oil reserves and is OPEC's second-largest producer. Nevertheless, most of the existing refineries in the country have been shut down or decreased their production capacity and suffered from damages and deterioration in the previous decades of conflicts.
While the ongoing reconstruction efforts in liberated areas and the revitalization of socio-economic activities across the country have prompted massive demand for fuel, Iraq has no choice but to import a significant amount of oil products from neighboring countries.
Against this backdrop, this project is placed as a high priority in line with the White Paper of the Government of Iraq to increase the volume of the high-value-added oil products, hence energizing private sector involvement in the downstream of Iraq's energy industry and providing economic opportunities for the people of Iraq. In addition, the new plant will also reduce
Furthermore, the project contains a component for vocational training to provide Iraqi workers with the necessary skills for the construction and operation of the refinery plant, thereby contributing to enhancing the capacity of local people.
