Electricity sector: tens of billions spent since 2003 with chronic shortages
Official and parliamentary figures on electricity spending have grown with each review while supply has not met demand: in August 2012 a spokesman of the parliamentary oil and gas committee said about $27bn had been spent since 2003 with little added capacity; in 2020 parliament estimated waste of about $81bn between 2005 and 2019 (as reported by Daraj, 2021). Generation of roughly 19 GW against demand above 30 GW (2021, specialists quoted by Daraj) illustrates the gap. These figures are verbal or parliamentary estimates, not audited accounts, and mix spending, fuel imports and losses.
- Period
- From 2003 to 2025
- Sector
- Electricity and energy infrastructureCapital and operating spending vs supply
- Kind of case
- Structural leakage
- Jurisdiction
- Federal Iraq
How the money moved, according to the sources
Overpriced or non-performing power-plant contracts, unfinished projects, fuel import costs, transmission losses and non-payment, compounded by corruption in contracting.
Open questions
- Audited capital spending on electricity by year (Ministry of Finance final accounts; BSA reports).
- Separate contract-level losses from fuel or imports costs.
People and companies
This case does not name any person or company. It rests on figures and institutions.
Sources
- Iraq Business News (John Lee, citing AKnews)23 August 2012Press reportTier C
$27bn spent on Electricity Sector since 2003
Originalelectricity has only increased by 1,000 me
- Daraj (Ali Karim Idhaib)24 June 2021Press reportTier D
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