KRG Natural Resources Delegation Begins Talks in Baghdad to Address Fuel Shortages
Kurdistan Region delegation meets Iraqi parliamentary committee as Erbil seeks a fair share of fuel supplies and an end to shortages affecting gasoline availability
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) — A high-level delegation from the Kurdistan Regional Government’s Ministry of Natural Resources is traveling to Baghdad on Thursday to discuss the fuel crisis in the Kurdistan Region and seek solutions to shortages in gasoline and other petroleum products.
Sipan Sherwani, a member of the Iraqi Parliament’s Oil and Gas Committee, said the delegation’s visit is focused on a meeting with a temporary parliamentary committee established to address the Kurdistan Region’s fuel shortages.
The committee includes representatives from several Iraqi government bodies, including an undersecretary, a director general, an economic contracts official, an administrative and financial director, and an auditing director.
According to information available ahead of the meeting, the delegation from the KRG Ministry of Natural Resources is expected to present its key observations and demands concerning the Kurdistan Region’s allocation of fuel supplies.
The discussions are aimed at finding an appropriate mechanism to ensure adequate supplies of gasoline and other essential petroleum products reach the Kurdistan Region.
The Iraqi parliamentary committee is expected to emphasize the principle of equal treatment in the distribution of fuel supplies.
Sherwani said the Region should receive the same fuel rights and allocations provided to Iraq’s central and southern provinces, without discrimination.
The talks come amid continued concerns over fuel availability in the Kurdistan Region, where disputes over the distribution of petroleum products have periodically contributed to shortages and pressure on consumers.
The delegation’s visit is therefore expected to focus not only on securing immediate fuel supplies but also on establishing a clearer and more equitable mechanism for future allocations between Baghdad and the Kurdistan Region.
Speaking at a press conference in Baghdad on Wednesday, Sherwani said he had discussed the issue directly with the Iraqi oil minister Bassim al-Abadi and urged him to increase the amount of crude oil supplied to the Kurdistan Region as part of a broader effort to address its fuel needs.
Sherwani said he had asked the minister why Baghdad could not provide additional crude oil to the Region in exchange for supplying fuel, referring to a proposal involving 50,000 barrels of crude oil and around seven million liters of gasoline.
According to the lawmaker, the oil minister responded that Iraq itself imports fuel and therefore does not currently have the capacity to provide fuel supplies to the Kurdistan Region.
The minister also stressed that resolving the issue would require a political decision between the federal government and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), Sherwani said.
Sherwani disputed claims that the KRG had requested only 50,000 barrels of crude oil per day, saying official documents show that the Region has been requesting 115,000 barrels per day since March 2025.
He said the Kurdistan Region had formally sought an increase in crude oil supplies and that Baghdad should address the request as part of efforts to resolve the ongoing fuel crisis.