Iraq signs bln-dollar power deals with GE and Siemens

By Simon Webb

DUBAI (Reuters) - Iraq has signed preliminary deals worth billions of dollars with General Electric Co (GE.N) and Siemens (SIEGn.DE) for equipment to almost double electricity generation capacity, an energy official said on Saturday.

The deals with GE, Siemens and a third company would be worth a total of $7 billion to $8 billion, Iraq's Electricity Minister Karim Waheed told Reuters.

Years of war, sanctions and neglect have battered Iraq's power grid and the country suffers chronic power shortages. The capital Baghdad receives only a few hours of electricity a day. The deals would mark a big step in the country's reconstruction, Waheed said.

"These deals will help us to end the electricity supply problem by 2012," Waheed said on a private visit to the United Arab Emirates.

Iraq signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) earlier this month for U.S. giant General Electric to supply turbines to generate 6,800 megawatts of power, Waheed said.

He declined to say how much Iraq would pay GE for the equipment, but said each megawatt would cost between $700,000 and $800,000. That would give a value of between $4.8 billion and $5.4 billion.

The country has signed a second MOU with Germany's Siemens to supply equipment to generate another 2,000 MW, he added. That deal would be worth between $1.4 billion and $1.6 billion.

Baghdad was negotiating with a third company for another 1,000 MW, he said, declining to give further details.