ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi’s order to supply the Kurdistan Region with 50 million liters of kerosene covers only 18 percent of its needs, the Region’s natural resources ministry said Sunday.

Earlier in the day, Iraq’s oil ministry said Zaidi had “directed the release of the kerosene share” for Kurdistan Region residents “at a subsidized price,” without specifying the quantity in its announcement.

The Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) ministry said the prime minister had approved 50 million liters, which “covers only 18 percent of the Kurdistan Region’s needs.” It added that the Region requires more than 268.7 million liters to provide each family with 200 liters.

The ministry said it would stay in contact with federal authorities to seek an increase in the allocation and ensure the Region’s needs are met.

Baghdad is required to supply the Kurdistan Region with 50 million liters of kerosene annually. However, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has repeatedly complained that the actual quantities delivered have fallen significantly short of that amount.

The allocation of crude oil to the Kurdistan Region has also been a point of contention between Erbil and Baghdad.

In late July, the KRG called on the federal government to increase the Region’s share of crude oil for domestic consumption from 50,000 to 126,700 barrels per day, in line with its population, which accounts for 12.67 percent of Iraq’s total.

Speaking to The New Region in late August, KRG natural resources ministry undersecretary Ahmed Mufti stated that Erbil is ready to send its 50,000 barrels of oil allocated for domestic consumption to Baghdad if the Iraqi government provides subsidized fuel for the Kurdistan Region.