Iraq just scrapped import taxes on solar panels — sunshine is about to get cheaper

Iraq's Council of Ministers has eliminated customs duties on imported solar energy systems altogether, the Iraqi News Agency reports. The tax was as high as 33% before it was cut to 5% in February; now panels, cables, inverters and lithium batteries come in duty-free, a move the government says is meant to bring down what families and businesses pay to go solar. It follows central-bank loans worth IQD 6 billion (about $4.6 million) for solar systems earlier this year. The Electricity Ministry has also finished drafting 40-article rules — with smart meters — that would let households connect their rooftop panels to the national grid and exchange power with it. The timing fits a market already moving: Iraq's first solar-module production line opened in Karbala in July, and a 300 MW solar project is under development there.

SDG 7 · Affordable and clean energy — Mechanism: policy reform