Iraqi Kurdistan’s gas stations seek supplies due to fuel cap
Shafaq News- Al-Sulaymaniyah/ Erbil
Fuel station owners in Iraqi Kurdistan’s Al-Sulaymaniyah province backed the Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) fixed gasoline price on Tuesday and denied refusing to implement it.
Bahman Qadir, spokesperson for the province’s fuel stations, told Shafaq News that operators wanted the price enforced across the market, but the Natural Resources Ministry “must provide sufficient gasoline at wholesale rates” that allow stations to comply with the official ceiling.
In Erbil, Governor Omed Khoshnaw announced that around 280 stations had committed to selling commercial regular gasoline at 850 Iraqi dinars ($0.65) per liter, while government-supplied gasoline would remain at 750 dinars ($0.57).
Natural Resources Directorate teams will also “monitor prices and fuel quality to prevent hoarding and market manipulation.”
A Shafaq News survey found regular gasoline still selling for around 1,300 dinars ($0.99) at some commercial stations, improved gasoline at 1,500 to 1,650 dinars ($1.14 to $1.26), and super gasoline at 1,700 to 2,000 dinars ($1.30 to $1.52).
The KRG authorized fuel imports on July 4 after reduced shipments, higher Iranian fuel prices, lower local allocations, and rising summer demand pushed up commercial prices and caused long queues at subsidized stations amid wider regional energy disruption linked to the US-Iran conflict and restricted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
Read more: Fuel costs in Iraqi Kurdistan defy ceiling prices
