Iraq's Electricity Ministry said Wednesday that the country will face a shortage of electricity after vital energy supplies from Iran were cut due due.
The ministry said in a statement that total electricity supplies have declined significantly, after Iran halted the export of 5 million cubic meters of gas per day to Iraq.
Gas imports are necessary for Iraq to meet the growing demand for electricity during the peak summer months, particularly in the southern provinces.
"The Iranian side demanded payment of financial obligations for gas duties from the Iraqi side," the statement said.
Iraq was unable to make payments totalling about $1.7 billion, owing to the failure of political elites to form a government eight months after the national elections. The existing interim Cabinet does not have the power to make payments.
The Ministry of Electricity said it was in contact with Iran to find a solution to debt treatment and resume electricity supplies.
Iran's energy imports account for more than a third of Iraq's energy needs during the scorching summer months.
Because of U.S. sanctions on Iran, Iraq must also qualify for sanctions exemptions in order to pay Tehran for its energy exports.
In the summer of 2018, the failure of Iraq's electricity grid was a major cause of violent protests in the oil-rich southern province of Basra.
The following year, mass anti-government protests erupted across the capital and Iraq's southern provinces over the failure to provide public services, including electricity.