Iraqi General Cement Co’s Kirkuk factory, the country’s largest, has resumed operations following a major environmental overhaul. The work to upgrade the 45 year-old plant, follows the Kirkuk environment directorate, and comes as Iraq continues to go out of years of under investment due to the US invasion and occupation of the country and subsequent civil war and the prior Saddam Hussein regime, which purposefully focussed investment in and around Baghdad and his home area of Tikrit, reports bne Intellinews.
The factory’s management (Al Maysarah Group) has implemented some upgrades, including installing a new dust control system and pollution monitoring equipment. After an environmental inspection and tests, the directorate ensured that the factory had successfully applied sustainable pollutant standards and significantly improved the dust filtration systems.
"The commitment of factories and companies in Kirkuk to not pollute the environment helps reduce air pollutants and improve the environment in general," Ali Ezzedine Khurshid, the Kirkuk environmental director, commented. The maintenance included improving dust treatment units. New air pollutants (TSP) measurements were taken to ensure industrial activities meet the required environmental criteria.
The factory was shut down in mid-November last year and fined IQD450m (US$343,351) due to non-compliance with environmental standards. Also, residents of Lailan protested against the adverse health effects the factory’s pollution was causing, including accusations of poisoning the local population and vegetation.
In August 2024 the Iraqi Oil Pipelines Corestarted oil pipeline supplies to the Kirkuk cement plant as part of wider rehabilitation work. According to a statement from the Ministry of Oil at the time, the pipeline, inactive for over three years, is now fully operational. Ali Abdul Kareem Al-Moussawi, the general manager of the Oil Pipelines Co, stated that technical and engineering teams completed the maintenance and rehabilitation of the pipeline, Iraq Oil News reported.
