Shafaq News-Baghdad
Fuel stationinvestors in Iraq called on Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi on Saturday tointervene urgently to stop a daily "major theft" linked to fuelsupply shortages.
In a statement, theinvestors said fuel stations that purchase a 36,000-liter tanker from the OilProducts Distribution Company receive only between 35,000 and 35,500 liters,causing significant financial losses.
“Instead ofaddressing the shortage, the company sends committees to record the missingquantities as violations and fine the stations four times the value, althoughthe shortfall originates from the supplied quantities.”
Iraq has facedshortages of regular and premium gasoline since late May, with long queuesforming at fuel stations. The Oil Ministry attributed the crisis to regionaldevelopments and the suspension of a key refinery project, which reducedhigh-octane gasoline supplies by up to five million liters per day, whilemotorists increasingly turned to the black market amid limited fuelavailability.
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