Page 59 - IRANRptNov19

Department said in an emailed statement cited by Reuters. “We engage regularly with the Iraqi government to support measures that improve Iraq’s energy independence.”
The Trump administration granted the first waiver last year after it re-imposed sanctions on Tehran, certain of which forbade countries from buying Iranian energy.
Its dealings with Baghdad are complicated in that while the Iraqis need to maintain strategic links with the US, the Iraqi government has close ties with Tehran.
Concerned that the energy waivers provided to Iraq compromise the maximum pressure campaign it is directing at Iran—described by Tehran as an “economic war” and “economic terrorism”—in an attempt at forcing fundamental change in Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile development programmes and roles in Middle East affairs such as proxy wars, the US has been pushing Baghdad to find alternative energy resources. Iraq has responded to that pressure by saying it will struggle to generate enough electricity unless it continues to use Iranian gas for three to four years.
Turkey is another neighbour of Iran that has protested that it does not have enough diversity in energy sources to entirely drop its purchasing of Iranian gas.
Iraqi Electricity Minister Luay al Khateeb told reporters in Abu Dhabi last month that Iraq now had capacity for 18,000 MW of power, up from 12,000-15,000 MW last year. However, peak demand in Iraq can reach about 25,000 MW and it is rising every year.
The minister added that the power sector needed investment worth at least $30bn to upgrade its grid. It is around 50 years old and has lost 25% of its capacity due to Islamic State attacks, he said.
Iran’s first private postal company, Post Aval (“First Post”) has launched, ICTNA.ir has reported.
As part of plans to break up the government-controlled mail monopoly introduced in 2018, the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (CIT) is splitting off​ ​sections of the postal industry​ to the private sector.
Under an agreement with Post Aval, which will serve as a central post distributor, some 30 smaller franchises will also enter into deals to deliver mail to regional localities.
As things stand, the nationwide daily mail service deliveries will remain under state-owned Iran Post, but parcels and other services will be handed over to Post Aval.
Some international courier, parcel and express mail operators, including DHL, continue to be active in Iran, but companies including TNT pulled out of the market in 2018.
In March 2018, the CIT ministry​ ​permitted two other companies,​ ​ Tipax and Peikbapa, to deliver parcels domestically.
Iran’s parliament (the Majlis) passed a law in early 2017 allowing for the breaking up of the state monopoly on intercity and city post services. The law stated that tender processes offering licences must be open to all players. Initially, five non-governmental consortiums applied for the licences, but the number of bidders was whittled down to two groups.
59​ IRAN Country Report​ November 2019 www.intellinews.com