Iraq hits record 28,000 megawatts in electricity production, minister says

BAGHDAD — Iraq has reached a record-high electricity production level of 28,000 megawatts, the highest in its history, Electricity Minister Ziyad Ali Fadhil announced Thursday.

In a statement from his office, the minister said the milestone was achieved through a coordinated strategy that included long-term maintenance contracts, power station upgrades, the installation of advanced cooling systems, and the partial use of imported fuel.

“Despite the existing challenges, we reached peak production thanks to a well-executed plan,” Fadhil said.

The Electricity Ministry described the figure as “an unprecedented record in power generation,” noting it was the first time Iraq had reached that capacity.

Fadhil also outlined a series of future projects aimed at expanding capacity to meet rising demand. These include agreements with General Electric to build plants generating 24,000 megawatts and with Siemens for an additional 14,000 megawatts.

“The ministry will soon sign an agreement with Shanghai Electric for a 10,000-megawatt capacity plant to help cover the increasing demand for power,” he added.

Earlier this year, Fadhil warned of potential summer power shortages due to delays in payments for imported Iranian gas and limited domestic fuel supplies. As of March, production capacity stood at about 27,000 megawatts—far short of the roughly 40,000 megawatts needed to meet peak summer demand.

“We aim for this summer to be different from last summer,” Fadhil said in a March interview with Al Hadath TV. “In numerical terms, we cannot reach a 24-hour electricity supply across all Iraqi governorates because the required production levels exceed 40,000 megawatts.”