BAGHDAD (AP) - Iraq's electricity production jumped more than 10 percent in roughly the first six months of 2008 compared to the same period a year ago, the director of energy operations for coalition forces said Sunday.Iraqi authorities have taken advantage of the recent decline in violence to repair damaged power stations and begin building new infrastructure, Brig. Carew Wilks said at a news conference in Baghdad's Green Zone. Those efforts have helped boost electricity production by 11 percent. But there is still not enough capacity to meet all of Iraq's needs, so coalition forces are working with the Iraqi government on ways to share power across the country, said Wilks.
Even with current efforts, "it will take many years of major investment to meet the rising energy demand in Iraq," Wilks said.
The electricity gains have been possible because violence in Iraq has dropped to its lowest level in more than four years.