Iraq Plans to Add 1,500 MW Floating Power Plants

Iraq plans to add 1,500 megawatts (MW) of electricity through floating power generation vessels to help stabilize its grid and reduce reliance on imported gas, the country’s electricity minister said.

Minister of Electricity Ziyad Ali Fadel said that the first phase of the programme will deliver up to 600 MW, with future expansions targeting 1,500 MW.

“Currently, around 600 MW of electricity depends on unstable imported gas, which accounts for about half of our supply. We also have about 3,000 MW that must be shifted to plants operating on domestic fuel,” he said.

The two ships will together supply 250 MW of power, with each ship contributing 125 MW.

Turkey’s Karpowership had said on Wednesday that its Iraqi affiliate BKPS signed a 71-day contract with Iraq’s Ministry of Electricity and the General Company for Electric Energy Production/Southern to supply up to 590 MW through two floating vessels. It said the multi-fuel enabled, self-contained ‘Powerships’ are being deployed to the ports of Khor Al Zubair and Umm Qasr in Basra in southern Iraq.

Karadeniz Powership Orhan Ali Khan docked at Umm Qasr Port on 21 August while Karadeniz Powership Orka Sultan docked at Khor Al-Zubair port on 23 August.

In December 2008, Karpowership had signed a contract with Iraq's Ministry of Electricity to deploy three powerships to supply a total of 520 MW of electricity, according to its website. The company owns and operates a fleet of floating power plants with more than 10,000 MW of installed capacity.