Transportation opportunities multiply

Sector BriefTransportation

Better security and growingeconomic activity mean thevolume of freight andfrequency of travel byindividuals is increasing rapidly.Every part of Iraq’s transportsystem requires investment asaccelerating demand for air, seaport, road and rail freightservices puts mounting strain onexisting capacities.

Transport, whether of people orgoods, was one of the sectorswhich suffered most under theconditions of violence andinstability which characterisedthe years immediately after thefall of the Saddam regime. Butnow it is a sector of greatopportunities. With a budget ofjust £313 million for the comingyear, Transport Minister AmerAbdul-Jabbar Ismail says he iseager to involve privateinvestors. “We don’t haveenough money for our projects,so we will have to go to outsideinvestors for funding,” he toldAgence France Presse in Januarythis year.

The Ministry of Transport isresponsible for themanagement, planning andpolicy of the country’s transportsystem, except for highwayswhich are the responsibility ofthe Ministry of Constructionand Housing. There are anumber of state organisationswhich manage individual partsof this system. These include:

• Iraqi Civil Aviation Authority• General Company of Iraqi Ports• General Company of Iraqi

Railways

• State Commission for Roadsand Bridges

Priority developments in thesector include

• Improving the facilities at themain airports including atBaghdad and Basra

• Building a new deepwaterport at El Faw

• Revamping the railwaynetwork

• Upgrading the country’sroads

“We need internationalcompanies to come andhelp us develop andupgrade our transportinfrastructure. Theopportunities are here, andwe will do what we can tohelp our partners succeed.”

Amer Abdul-Jabbar Ismail,Transport Minister

I R A Q

S A U D IA R A B I A

I R A N

T U R K E Y

S Y R I A

K U W A I T

Dohuk

N i n e v e h

A l - A n b a r

E r b i l

Sulemaniyah At-Tamim

SalahAd-Din

D i y a l a

W a s i t

Maysan

Dhi Qar

Karbala

Al-Qadisiyah

B a s r aA l - M u t h a n n a

A n - N a j a f

Baghdad

Babylon

BAGHDAD

Basra

Mosul

Kirkuk

Tikrit

Dohuk

Samarra

Sulemaniyah

Ar-Ramadi

Al-Fallujah

Al-Hadithah

Ar-Rutbah

Baqubah

Al-Muqdadiyah

Karbala

Al-Hillah

An-Najaf

Ad-Diwaniyah

Al-Mahmudiyah

An-Nukhayb

As-Samawah An-Nasiriyah

Al-Amarah

Ash-Shatrah

Al-Kut

As-Sawayrah

Bayji

Khanaqin

Al-Qayyarah

Ad-Dawrah

Erbil

Az-Zubayr

Ar-Rifai

Al-Hayy

Kifri

TuzKhurmatu

Ranya

KoySanjaq

Suq Ash-Shuyukh

Al-Habbaniyah

Al-Musayyib

Shaqlawa

BaladRuz

Al-Mahawil

Al-Qaim

Penjwin

Badrah

As-Salman

AliAl-Gharbi

Umm Qasr

KUWAITCITY

Al-Faw

Balad

100

0

0

Kilometres

Miles

200

National boundary

Governorate boundary

International airport

Expressway

Primary routes (hard/paved)

Railway

Sea port

ShattAl-Arab

LakeUrmia

ThartharLake

RazzazaLake

T H EG U L F

Qezel Owzan

Euphrates

Kh

abur

Karkheh

Dez

Karu

n

Great Zab

Little Zab

Diy

ala

Tigris

Euphrates

Wadi Al-Ubayyid

Wadi Al-Ghadawi

Wadi Hawran

Tigris

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AM

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TO DAYRAZ-ZAWR

TOKERMANSHAH

TO AL-QAMISHLI

TOCIZRE

TOURMIA

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S Y R I A N

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Sim

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TO AL-HASAKAH

TOSANANDAJ

C A S P I A NS E A

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BGW

BSR

SUL

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Transportationmap of Iraq

© Cross-border Information Ltd 2009(www.cbi-publishing.com)

There are extensive opportunities availableto the private sector in the road transportsector. Most road freight is already carriedout by private companies.

The Ministry of Transport is exploring thepotential for setting up rapid transit busnetwork, which would include dedicatedbus lanes in major cities.

There is huge scope for theimprovement of Iraq’s rail network,which in 2004 was running at just 10per cent of its capacity. The situationhas improved markedly since then.The 310-mile Baghdad-Basra line hasstarted carrying passengers again,thanks to improvements in security.

The Transport Ministry plans toreopen the western minerals railwayby the end of 2009. The line is astrategic link between Baghdad anda number of major industrial sites. Itruns from Akashat near theJordanian border to the main Al-Qaim (Syrian border) – Baghdad lineand connects to several fertiliser andconcrete plants in Anbar province.

The Ministry is assessing the safety ofa key bridge which has been rebuiltfollowing bomb damage. This line isalso the first stage of a proposed raillink between the Bayji and Anbar oilrefineries.

• The first major rail constructionproject to take place in Iraq since2003 will be a 285km railway linearound Baghdad, connected to thecountry’s main rail network. The$5.6 billion project will take sixyears to complete.

• The Ministry of Transport willinvite large internationalcompanies to participate in thisproject, whose objective is to allowtransit freight cargoes to by-pass

Rail transportBaghdad, freeing up transportcapacity within the city, improvingsafety and reducing environmentaldamage. The project also includesthe construction of freight yardsand specialized storage facilitiesoutside the city.

• At the end of March, French,German and American companiespresented offers the Baghdad cityauthority to build a city metro.The government has said that itwill allocated £2.1 billion from thestate budget to finance the 41station underground network.

• Austrian and Russian companieshave proposed a scheme to theKurdistan Regional Governmentfor the construction of a railnetwork to link the threeprovinces within the IraqiKurdistan region.

• Upgrades are planned for railwaylines between Basra and UmmQasar and between Baghdad andMosul in the north and Rabia, nearthe Syrian border. New railwaylines have also been proposedfrom Bayji to Aleppo in Syria andfrom Mosul to Turkey. These linescould eventually form part of thelong term programme to link mostGCC countries by rail and toconnect the Gulf railway networkto Turkey, Jordan, Iran and theCausasus via Iraq.

• The Ministry of Transport will opena section of its minerals railwaybetween Baghdad and Fallujah bymid-February.

• The National InvestmentCommission says it will assessfurther private sector participationin a national strategy. These willinclude maintaining andupgrading track, rehabilitatingrailway stations, and repairing orreplacing rolling stock andmaintenance equipment.

The rail network consists of 2,400 kmof track. There are approximately 120stations. The railway company has 187locomotives and 1,685 units of rollingstock, for both passengers and freight.

The main lines are:• Baghdad-Basrah-Umm Qasr port• Baghdad-Ninawa-Yurubiyah (links

to Turkish system)• Baghdad-Haditha-Qubaysah (links

to Syrian system)• Baghdad-Kirkuk-Arbil• Bayji refinery-Al Qaim fertiliser plant

Road freightRepairs to both roads and bridges whichwere damaged in the 2003 conflict havebeen extensive and are ongoing.

Contacts: For general information about investment opportunities in Iraq or the investment process, please visit the IraqiNational Investment Commission website at www.investpromo.gov.iq or email at info@investpromo.gov.iq.For information about specific sectors and opportunities, or to arrange a visit, please contact the National Investment Commissionthrough one of the contacts below.Telephone (English): + 964 7901 970 107 Telephone (Arabic): + 964 7704 435 146Email (English): m-hussein@investpromo.gov.iq Email (Arabic): a.alwan@investpromo.gov.iq

Average flights per day

Baghdad 89

Basra 7

Najaf 9

Erbil 24

Sulemaniyah 17

Mosul 7

Airports and airlines

On 24 March United NationsDevelopment Programme (UNDP)officials presented the Iraq CivilAviation Authority (ICAA) with theinaugural draft of a Civil AviationMaster Plan. This plan for thedevelopment of Iraq’s airports andcivil aviation may include outsourcingairport management to privateoperators.

Baghdad International Airport

• At present the largest and mostactive airport is BaghdadInternational Airport (BIAP) whichthe government intends todevelop as a key business hub.The Iraqi National InvestmentCommission (NIC) and the Ministryof Transport plan to develop 16cities in the airport’s hinterland,which could require investments ofmore than £35 billion.

• In December 2008, Air France-KLMsigned an outline agreement withthe Transport Ministry to assistwith the renovation of Baghdadaiport’s third terminal and to buildnew airports elsewhere in thecountry.

• BIAP can handle up to 7.5 millionpassengers per year and is servedby a number of scheduled aircarriers

Basrah International Airport

• Lightly-used during the Saddamera, this airport is of greatstrategic significance. It will be thegateway to the main oil-producingregion in the south. So as the oillicensing tender process advancesduring this year, it will becomeone of the main entry points forIOC executives. A business plan hasbeen prepared for the Airport and

Source: CBI research

Iraq’s 22 airports are the prime gateway for mostvisitors to the country. In March 2009, the busiestairports were:

SeaportsIraq has five ports on its short Gulfcoastline. Two of the main sea portsKhor az-Zubayr and Umm Qasr arelocated on the Khor az-Zubayrchannel, south of Basra city. Al-Faw islocated at the mouth of the Shat al-Arab. There are also two river portson this waterway which runs inlandto the city.

Record numbers of vessels have beendocking at Iraq’s ports in recentmonths, according to the state-owned General Company for Ports ofIraq (GCPI), which owns and runs allthe country’s ports. Shipping trafficrose 46 per cent during February. 100vessels docked during the monthcompared to the average of 75.

The increase in traffic follows asuccessful campaign by the Iraqisecurity forces in 2008 to regaincontrol of Umm Qasr, Iraq’s onlydeep-sea commercial port, from localmilitias. All the port facilities sufferfrom ageing infrastructure and lackof storage facilities and as a resultoperate well below their designcapacities

Al Faw Sea Port

• In the future, this will be thelocation of Basrah Grand Port, a100-berth deep water port,capable of servicing the wholeregion. Developing this projectcould cost £3.1 billion. TheMinistry of Transport beganreceiving formal expressions ofinterest in late 2005. , At present,wreckage from the Iran-Iraq warmeans that Al Faw is onlyaccessible by smaller vessels. It iscurrently used as a dock forfishermen.

• For more information on what willbe one of Iraq’s most importantinfrastructure projects please referto the dedicated investment brief.

Umm Qasr

In the past three years Umm Qasr hasoperated at an average of 67 per

cent of its 10 million t/yr capacity. Ithas 22 operational berths includingtwo roll-on roll-off, one grain siloand two container berths. Theremaining 17 berths are all generalbreak cargos. Additionally, there is asugar berth operated by the Ministryof Industry & Minerals. The containerberths have a stated capacity of 15containers per hour or 120 containersper 8-hour shift.

• In November 2008 GCIP invitedinternational shipping companiesto tender for three-year contractsto manage two container berthsat Umm Qasr.

• An international operator may bebrought in to manage the less-developed South Port area withgeneral cargo, bulk, and containerfacilities under a Long TermConcessionary Agreement.

• A separate tender could then beused to select a managementcompany to improve the operationof the relatively well-developedNorth Port area with container,general cargo, and passengeroperations, under a shortercontract.

Khor Al Zubayr Sea Port

Khor Al Zubayr, located just north ofUmm Qasr is the major petroleumexport hub. It handles cargo of about120,000 t/month. Four of its 12 berthsare used for oil and oil products. Therest are for general cargo. Two ofthem are deep water.

Dhow on Shatt Al-ArabBaghdad International Airport

Al Maq’al River Port

Located in the centre of Basra city onthe west of the Shatt al Arab, AlMaq’al has 15 berths, including onegrain berth and one container berth.More than £5 million has beeninvested in the port since 2003 tobring it back into operationfollowing more than 20 years ofinaction. Increased operationsdepend greatly on dredging andwreck removal in the Shatt al-Arab

Abu Falous River Port

This is relatively small port, for feedervessels and dhows. It possesses afertiliser wharf and three new jettieswhich handle the import of cars,agriculture products, constructionmaterials and electrical goods.

the Ministry of Transport iscurrently evaluating differentpartnership proposals to developand enhance airport traffic andservices. 11 airlines are alreadyusing the airport.

Najaf International Airport

• Regular international flights toNajaf airport started last July andincreased in frequency in January.This formerly military airport isexpanding to take internationalflights bringing pilgrims to theholy sites in Najaf and Karbala. Amasterplan proposes new facilitiesand it is likely that internationalcharters will increase rapidly thisyear.

Erbil International Airport

• The renovation of ErbilInternational Airport in IraqiKurdistan should be completedduring 2009. China’s IncheonInternational Airport Corporation(IIAC) has signed a £21.9 millionconsultancy agreement to operatethe airport over the next fiveyears.

• The new facility includes a modernrunway long enough to takealmost any aircraft and a newterminal building. With the abilityto support more than 3.5 millionpassengers per year, it will be aninternational transport hub. Thisrepresents a huge increase on thecurrent facility, which supportsjust 10-15 flights daily.

• Austrian Airlines now providesscheduled service to both Erbil andSulaymaniyah airports.

Others

• Emirati Joptir and Iraqi Airwaysflew the first scheduledinternational civilian flight since1991 to Mosul airport from Dubaion 27 February. The airportfacilitated travel for Iraqi pilgrimsto Saudi Arabia during the 2007Hajj season. Iraqi Airways currentlyprovides limited flights toBaghdad.

• The mayor of Diwaniya has invitedexpressions of interest frominternational companies to buildan airport to the east of the city,which is 180km south of Baghdadat a cost of approximately £175million.

Airlines

An increasing number of airlines nowfly to Iraq and their number willincrease. The transport minister hassaid that airlines that want to openroutes to Iraq will be givenimmediate approvals.

Iraqi Airways, the national flagcarrier is rapidly expanding it scopeof operations. Air France-KLM hasagreed to help it set up commercialflights to Europe and otherinternational destination. Thenational flag carrier is planning toadd scheduled flights to Bahrain,Germany, India and Qatar.

• Iraqi Airways is overhauling itsageing fleet and has alreadyplaced substantial orders withinternational companies worth£3.8 billion.

• In March 2008, the FinanceMinistry ordered 40 aircraft from

Boeing on behalf of Iraqi Airways.The first planes will be delivered in2013. The Ministry will own theaircraft to prevent Kuwait Airwaysseizing them in compensation fordamages incurred in the 1990invasion.

• In 2008 Iraqi Airways also orderedten new aircraft from Canada’sBombadier. The first CRL900 wasdelivered to Erbil in October 2008.

• Transport minister Amir Abdul-Jabbar is considering the lease ofcivilian aircraft from Turkey.

Wreck removal and dredging

Several Turkish companies havealready been commissioned toremove some of the wrecks whichblock the Shatt al-Arab and otherwaterways on Iraq’s Gulf coast.Extensive dredging to allow access tomore ships with deeper drafts will bean ongoing requirement.

Warehousing

New warehousing capacity is neededat all ports to handle forecastincreases in cargo. Additional craneand offloading machinery is alsorequired, while much of the existingassociated infrastructure needs repairand refurbishment.

Cranes at the dock