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Basra officials criticise summer power shortages
28/07/2011 16:45
Basra, July 28 (AKnews) – Local officials in Basra criticized the ministry of electricity on Thursday for power shortages in the province as temperatures hit 50C.
Regular black-outs have hit the city, leaving residents sweltering in the heat without air conditioning.
Iraq has been suffering from a lack of sufficient power since the gulf war which destroyed the country’s power grid and much of its infrastructure. In some parts of Iraq, national power supply never exceeds 8 hours per day.
A port city on the gulf, the oil-rich city of Basra is the hottest area in Iraq.
Last year, a number of people were killed scores injured in demonstrations in Basra that called for basic services including electricity. People and businesses depend on privately owned generators. The government decided recently to provide the generators with fuel in an attempt to increase the power supply.
But a member of the Iraqi parliament from Basra Hussein al-Asadi said that the Iraqi government should have established nationally owned power stations instead of giving fuel to private.
Reports indicate that with the advent of the holy Muslim month of Ramadan, people of Basra will take to the streets to demand improved services.
Head of the energy and electricity committee in the Basra provincial council Zyad Ali Fadhil told AKnews that they are working on finding solution to the issue: “We signed last year the largest ever contract to solve this issue, the establishment of a 500 megawatt power station worth about US$50 million.
“But the ministry of electricity has not given official consent yet,” He claimed.
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28/07/2011 16:45
Basra, July 28 (AKnews) – Local officials in Basra criticized the ministry of electricity on Thursday for power shortages in the province as temperatures hit 50C.
Regular black-outs have hit the city, leaving residents sweltering in the heat without air conditioning.
Iraq has been suffering from a lack of sufficient power since the gulf war which destroyed the country’s power grid and much of its infrastructure. In some parts of Iraq, national power supply never exceeds 8 hours per day.
A port city on the gulf, the oil-rich city of Basra is the hottest area in Iraq.
Last year, a number of people were killed scores injured in demonstrations in Basra that called for basic services including electricity. People and businesses depend on privately owned generators. The government decided recently to provide the generators with fuel in an attempt to increase the power supply.
But a member of the Iraqi parliament from Basra Hussein al-Asadi said that the Iraqi government should have established nationally owned power stations instead of giving fuel to private.
Reports indicate that with the advent of the holy Muslim month of Ramadan, people of Basra will take to the streets to demand improved services.
Head of the energy and electricity committee in the Basra provincial council Zyad Ali Fadhil told AKnews that they are working on finding solution to the issue: “We signed last year the largest ever contract to solve this issue, the establishment of a 500 megawatt power station worth about US$50 million.
“But the ministry of electricity has not given official consent yet,” He claimed.
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
