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Scenes From Oil-Rich Kurdistan

Feb 19 2008

Back to: Boomtown, Iraq

Kurdistan map
roadside filling station
Shaqlawa, Kurdistan
Metering station
Amusement park
Sheik Allah cemetery
Oil bubbling up
1 of 12
Map of Kurdistan Region
Map by Danielle Jett
The northern Iraq region of Kurdistan, in red, is roughly the size of Maryland, sitting on at least one-fifth (and maybe a lot more) of Iraq's total oil reserves, estimated to be 115 billion barrels.

Roadside Filling Station
Although traditional filling stations have reopened throughout the region, there are still roadside vendors who sell gasoline and pink diesel fuel from huge banks of 20-liter plastic jugs.
Kurdistan Skyline
Luxury houses are being built on the main road north of Shaqlawa. Less than three hours from Baghdad, business is blooming—not "booming," the fixer/driver Hameed carefully insists.
Metering Station
The metering station at the pipeline in Zakhu. No Kurdish oil may flow through here, only oil that is owned by the Iraqi central government.
The Kurdish Dream
The Dream City project includes an amusement park and plans for entire new communities, houses, parks, and mosques.
The Two Iraqs
In Erbil, near the Sheik Allah cemetery, rises the $1 billion Nishtiman Shopping Mall. The first of five construction phases was completed in 2007, with 800 shops and 400 offices.
Money Pit
In Tawke, Safar Mohammed Omer stands beside a 40-foot-deep pool of oil. The land is leased to a Norwegian company for $300 an acre, but villagers get just a fraction of that.

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