Iraq will launch a project in early 2023 for the construction of the much-delayed ring road around its capital Baghdad, the official Alsabah newspaper said on Tuesday.

The 94-km road was approved in 1980s, but the project was suspended due to wars and disruption of oil exports, Iraq’s lifeline.

The paper quoted Nabil Saffar, a spokesman for the Construction and Housing Ministry, as saying the project includes a 100-metre-wide road, three causeways, 18 intersections, rest houses and other facilities.

“The Ministry is revising designs for the ring road with the help of an international consultancy company…after the new designs are completed, phase 1 of the project will be launched in early 2024,” Saffar said without mentioning estimated project costs.

(Writing by Nadim Kawach; Editing by Anoop Menon)

(anoop.menon@lseg.com)