Oil distributor warns against sale of winter kerosene cards to street buyers

BAGHDAD — Iraq’s Oil Products Distribution Company said the electronic card system used to provide subsidized winter kerosene ensures allocations reach eligible households, warning that some citizens have been selling their cards to itinerant buyers who then resell the fuel at commercial prices.

Company spokesperson Rafid Sadiq said in a statement that distribution outlets “do not require the cardholder to be the same person who owns the phone,” noting that any family member with an internet-enabled device can complete the transaction. He said nearly all families have bank accounts, and those who do not can visit kiosks that issue and recharge electronic cards, allowing them to purchase their kerosene share “in a simple and smooth process similar to any purchase using POS [point of sale].”

Iraq distributes subsidized kerosene to households each winter, with government prices set far below market levels. In October 2025, the Oil Ministry launched this year’s allocation at 150 dinars per liter (about $0.11), providing 100 liters per family in the northern governorates of Nineveh, Kirkuk, Salah al-Din, and Anbar, where temperatures drop earlier. Allocations for central and southern governorates will roll out as temperatures fall.

Sadiq said the company has not seen difficulties with households obtaining the cards, calling the system a tool that protects citizens’ rights and prevents subsidized kerosene from being diverted to unauthorized sellers offering it at higher prices than state and private stations.

He said the company has documented cases of citizens selling their cards to “itinerant buyers,” who collect the subsidized share and resell it at market rates, even though the card is intended “to guarantee citizens’ rights during the winter only.”