Kurdistan Region denies 'rumors' of spike in cooking gas prices
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has denied recent “rumors” of an impending increase in the price of cooking gas throughout the entire semi-autonomous region.
The Ministry of Natural Resources said in a statement on Wednesday that it is committed to providing affordable cooking fuel to the people of the Kurdistan Region, and has made an agreement with oil and gas operator Dana Gas to this end “in accordance with fixed pricing and prerequisites for the benefit of citizens.”
“Therefore, we assure citizens that these rumors that speak of the high price of cooking gas cylinders are unfounded,” the statement said.
The current price of a cylinder of cooking gas is 7,500 Iraqi dinars, or just under $6.50.
Though a small increase would not greatly affect more affluent residents, even minor fluctuations can have sweeping consequences for those with less money, including over one million IDPs and refugees taking refuge in the Kurdistan Region.
In July, Dana Gas announced that it was looking forward to strengthening its “flourishing partnership” with the KRG after the company announced a significant increase to its market share in Kurdistan compared to the year prior.
Read More: Dana Gas underlines ‘flourishing relationship’ with Kurdistan after increase in 2019 collections
“We look forward to strengthening our collaboration with the Kurdistan Regional Government in the years to come,” Dana said in the statement.
Earlier that month, Dana Gas has hired an investment bank to counsel the company on helping to sell its assets in Egypt, worth over $500 million, and switch its focus to the Kurdistan Region.
Read More: Dana Gas hires adviser to switch focus to Kurdistan, sell Egypt assets: Report
According to a source cited by Reuters, the company felt that focusing on a single geographical territory would attract more investors to the company in the future.