Kurdistan’s 24/7 power project faces backlash over price hike
Shafaq News/ A new electricityinitiative aiming to provide uninterrupted power across the Kurdistan Regionhas triggered a wave of criticism, with a civil society coalition inAl-Sulaymaniyah warning that the proposed pricing could impose a heavy burdenon consumers.
Delshad Baban, spokesperson for the Civil Society OrganizationsCoalition, acknowledged in a press conference that the Runaki project is asignificant step forward but raised concerns over the sharp increase inelectricity tariffs.
"Raising electricity prices from 18 dinars (about $0.012) per unitto 156 dinars (about $0.11) is a drastic jump that could overwhelmconsumers," Baban said.
He warned that the project, in its current form, might primarily benefitwealthier citizens, “contradicting the government’s stated goal of makingelectricity a public service.”
The coalition called on activists and civil society organizations tooppose the project unless pricing adjustments are made, hinting at potentiallegal and civic actions to halt it.
In turn, Fares Mirkhan, Director General of Power Generation at theKurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Ministry of Electricity, stressed thatelectricity tariffs have not yet been finalized and remain under review.
"Pricing decisions require official approval from the ministry andother relevant government authorities. The proposed tariffs will be submittedto the Council of Ministers for final approval before implementation,"Mirkhan said in a statement.
He emphasized that the Runaki project, launched last year, is focused onbuilding new power stations in Erbil, Al-Sulaymaniyah, and Duhok, to deliverround-the-clock electricity to the entire region by 2026.
