PROJECT UPDATE- France’s TotalEnergies and the Iraqi government struck an agreement on the delayed USD 27 bn cluster of energy projects in the country, according to a statement. The accord, which comes after more than a year of stalled talks between the two sides on the back of changes to the government, revives hopes of luring back foreign investments to the energy-rich country.

The details: Per the agreement, Iraq’s state-owned Basrah Oil Company (BOC) will hold a 30% stake in the Gas Growth Integrated Project (GGIP). The stake announced by TotalEnergies is lower than the 40% initially demanded by Iraq. QatarEnergy will grab a 25% stake in the GGIP per an invitation by TotalEnergies, which will own a 45% stake.

About the GGIP: The energy projects cluster aims to boost Iraq’s natural resources to enhance electrical supply through a USD 10 bn investment plan by all parties, the TotalEnergies statement said. The funds would be invested to recover flared gas on three oil fields to supply gas to power generation plants and build a seawater treatment plant to provide water injection for pressure maintenance to raise regional oil production.

And that’s not all: TotalEnergies will develop a 1 GW solar power plant to supply the Basrah regional grid, according to the statement. The French company will invite Saudi Arabia’s utility Acwa Power to take part in the project.

Iraq wants to ramp up its solar energy generation: Iraq wants to produce 5 GW of solar power in 2023. The country signed solar power agreements over the past two years with several companies, lining up a total generation capacity of 7.5 GW.