Trade Bank of Iraq (TBI), UK-based bank Standard Chartered and US-based GE have closed $600m of financing towards GE’s ambitious multi-billion dollar power programme in Iraq.

Comprised of two phases, the Power Up Plan will involve the installation of more than 2GW of new power and the operation and maintenance of up to 6.7GW of power for the Iraqi grid.

On 21 October, GE revealed it had signed a memorandum of understanding to add an additional 14GW of generation capacity to Iraq’s grid, with 1.5GW planned to come online in the summer of 2019.

The scale of the mega-contracts conveys the dire situation of Iraq’s power situation, with summer peak demand outstripping supply in 2016 by up to 13GW.

TBI was established in July 2003 to assist with the reconstruction of post-war Iraq and facilitate international trade and investment in the country.