The United States has granted Iraq a 90-day extension to an exemption from sanctions re-imposed on neighboring Iran to keep importing electricity and natural gas and meet its energy needs.
Senior officials close to negotiations, requesting anonymity, said on Thursday that a delegation of Iraqi officials had managed to secure the wavier just as the previous 45-day one expired.
The temporary relief from the sanctions provides additional time for Iraq to determine ways to pay Iran for the imports of natural gas and energy supplies in denominations other than dollar without violating US sanctions.
On December 11, Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi said the Baghdad government would send a delegation to the US to explore avenues for a waiver over Iran sanctions.
Hayan Abdul Ghani, head of state-run South Gas Co. (SGC), told reporters on December 6 that Iraq needed at least two years to boost the country’s gas production to stop importing…