Iraq launched a $17 billion project to connect a central commodities port on its southern coast by rail and roads to the border with Turkey.<\/p>\n
The Development Road intends to connect the Grand Faw Port in Iraq’s oil-rich south, located close to the mouth of the Shatt al-Arab River on the Persian Gulf, to Turkey, turning the country into a transit hub by cutting travel time between Asia and Europe in a proposal to rival the Suez Canal.<\/p>\n
Farhan al-Fartousi, director general of the General Company for Ports of Iraq, claimed: “The Development Road is not just a road to move goods or passengers. This road opens the door to the development of vast areas of Iraq”.<\/p>\n
Iraq’s government expects high-speed trains moving goods and passengers at up to 300 kilometers per hour, ties to local industry hubs and an energy component that could contain oil and gas pipelines.<\/p>\n
It would mark a substantial leave from the country’s current aged transport network.<\/p>\n
Presently, Iraq’s train service runs a handful of lines, comprising slow oil freight and a single overnight passenger train that trundles from Baghdad to Basra, taking 10 to 12 hours to travel 500 kilometers.<\/p>\n
Fartousi revealed that the Grand Faw Port was planned over a decade ago and is now halfway to completion.<\/p>\n
Passenger transport between Iraq and Europe goes back to grand programs at the turn of the 20th century to make a Baghdad to Berlin Express.<\/p>\n
Mentioning programs to ferry tourists and pilgrims to Shiite holy sites in Iraq and Mecca in Saudi Arabia for the Haj pilgrimage, Fartousi remarked: “We will make this line active again and tie it to other countries”.<\/p>\n
The scheme was revealed at a conference that strived at courting Arab interests, containing from Persian Gulf states, Syria and Jordan. A senior government deputy stated that regional investment was on the table.<\/p>\n
Commitments to development are long-standing in Iraq, however, infrastructure remains decrepit even as the government of Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani makes a motivation to reconstruct roads and bridges.<\/p>\n
Though, officials claim that the Development Road is based on something new: a period of relative stability since late last year that they hope can be maintained.<\/p>\n
Fartousi believes if work begins in early 2024, the project would be finished in 2029.<\/p>\n
He pointed out: “Even if Iraq was absent for a year or two or a decade or two, it must return one day or another. Hopefully, these days are the beginning of the return of Iraq”.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Iraq launched a $17 billion project to connect a central commodities port on its southern coast by rail and roads to the border with Turkey. The Development Road intends to connect the Grand Faw Port in Iraq’s oil-rich south, located close to the mouth of the Shatt al-Arab River on the Persian Gulf, to Turkey, turning the country into a transit hub by cutting travel time between Asia and Europe in a proposal to rival the Suez Canal. Farhan al-Fartousi, director general of the General Company for Ports of Iraq, claimed: “The Development Road is not just a road to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":11868,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[41,43],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11866","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-project-show-case","post--single"],"yoast_head":"\n