Kamaran N. Bakr, CEO of Civelec, a company specialized in civil and electrical projects in Kurdistan and a leading supplier of electrical materials in the region, gives an overview of Civelec and mentions some of its upcoming projects and success stories. He also discusses international reach and talks about his wish to attract investors.
The role of tourism has been, is and will continue to be very important. When I first arrived in Kurdistan two years ago, there were not nearly as many hotels and brands with their eyes focused on Kurdistan as there are today. The role of the tourism industry is continuously increasing here.
Empire World’s Marriott Hotel will be a unique hotel catering for needs of all visitors of Erbil, including business travelers. Peshraw Majid Agha has a positive outlook for the real estate in Erbil, which is now one of the most important cities in Iraq for businesses. The prices in Erbil are increasing and investments are flowing into the region at a substantial rate. Peshraw Majid Agha also discusses the other divisions of Falcon Group: Falcon Oil & Gas and Falcon Security.
Falcon Oil and Gas (Falcon Group) began its operations in early 2013. The company provides specialized rental equipment and warehousing facilities to the major oil and gas companies and also service companies that are working in Iraqi Kurdistan. Falcon Oil and Gas aims to attract more international companies to the region through various joint ventures.
Repsol is an international oil company (originally from Spain) that has been working in Kurdistan since mid-2011. Repsol has ongoing explorations in two blocks in the region and hopes to follow the success route of oil discoveries in Iraqi Kurdistan.
A revival of the health care sector in Iraqi Kurdistan happened 6 or 7 years ago. Healthcare facilities in Erbil, including private hospitals, experienced an increased demand as, due to security concerns in Iraq, more and more patients from different regions of Iraq started to come for treatment. In that time, Zozik Group opened its Soran Hospital. At present, Soran Hospital has 50 beds, 6 operation rooms, an IVF section, and all the other specializations except for the open heart operations and brain surgeries.
The idea of establishing a stock exchange in Iraqi Kurdistan dates back to 2007. Erbil Stock Exchange recently signed a new agreement with Nasdaq Omex, which will substantially facilitate companies participation whether they are local or foreign. All companies in Iraq, not only those in Erbil or other parts of Iraqi Kurdistan, will have the opportunity to be enlisted on Erbil Stock Exchange.
Most roads were old and there is a great need to renew and rebuild these roads, as well as construct new lines of transportation including roads, tunnels, highways and railways. We need international companies to joint venture with local companies to carry out large projects in Kurdistan…
