Power Struggles: Iraq Faces Widespread Outage

A power outage struck central and southern Iraq due to a shutdown at Anbar's Hamidiya plant. The incident highlights Iraq's ongoing struggles with energy provision since the 2003 invasion. Despite being an OPEC member, Iraq relies on Iranian gas imports, complicated by U.S. sanctions against Iran.

Central and southern Iraq faced a significant power outage on Monday following a shutdown at the Hamidiya power plant in Anbar province, according to the Ministry of Electricity. The malfunction sent ripples through the country's electricity transmission network.

A key figure from Iraq's parliamentary energy committee confirmed to Reuters that the blackout did not impact the Kurdistan region, autonomously governed and situated in the north. Nonetheless, the outage exposes Iraq's chronic energy supply issues persisting since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion that ousted Saddam Hussein.

Despite its status as one of the top oil producers worldwide and a member of OPEC, Iraq is still heavily reliant on Iranian natural gas imports. This dependency is further complicated by the United States' stringent sanctions on Iran, which include revoking a waiver allowing Iraq to purchase electricity from Tehran earlier this year.

(With inputs from agencies.)