Iraq's government had officially approved a Chinese private company to build the country's first industrial city in Basra. This industrial city would focus on the production of steel and other metal-related products in the future.

The first industrial city would be built on the State Company for Iron and Steel (SCIS) site, which was an Iraqi state-owned steel company and the country's main steel producer until production ceased in 2003 due to war.

It was understood that this Chinese private company, Tsingshan Holding Group, would undertake the construction of the southern Basra oil hub project after being selected by the Ministry of Industry in early 2024.