Iraq opens new solar power plant in East Baghdad oilfield
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – In a step aiming to integrate renewable energy into oil fields, Iraq inaugurated on Sunday a new solar power plant in the East Baghdad oilfield.
Director of Iraq's Midland Oil Company, Mohammed Yassin Hassan, attended the inauguration event, as did officials from the Chinese company EBS, the field's operator, according to a statement released by the Iraqi Oil Ministry.
Hassan noted that the initiative is a promising start for future projects aiming to increase the use of solar energy throughout all of the company's oil fields, thus decreasing carbon emissions and shifting toward sustainable energy in accordance with government environmental objectives.
The new solar power facility has 2,338 solar panels and a total output capacity of about 1.3 megawatts, which is enough to power certain EBS and Midland Oil Company facilities.
While reducing carbon emissions by 2,640 tons, the project also saves approximately $720,000 annually, a cost that would have been associated with traditional power generation.
The project is part of initiatives to increase solar energy in Iraq, which have gained growing momentum in the past few years.
The Iraqi government aims to include renewable energy sources, notably solar energy, into the national power grid to minimize reliance on fossil fuels and improve energy security.
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