The bank through which Iraq pays for Iranian gas imports to power its grids said Tuesday it would stop processing payments if a crucial US sanctions exemption expires next month. A failure to renew the US waiver could be devastating for Iraq’s crippled electricity sector, which has relied on Iran for about a third of its supply, and comes at a time of heightened US-Iran tensions. Washington slapped tough sanctions on Iran’s energy sector in 2018 but has granted Iraq a series of temporary waivers over the last 15 months to allow it to buy gas from Tehran.
