Half of Runaki households across Kurdistan paid less than 20,000 IQD in May

Erbil, Kurdistan Region (GOV.KRD) — The Ministry of Electricity is pleased to announce that record-low electricity bills for May were issued for families and businesses under the Runaki initiative.

 

To date, more than a million people across the Kurdisant Region, or approximately 15% of the population, enjoy access to 24-hour electricity.

Table 1: 50% of Runaki subscribers paid the following in May:

 

	Kurdistan	Erbil	Slemani	Duhok
Household	20,000	20,000 IQD	18,000 IQD	38,000 IQD
Businesses	44,000	59,000 IQD	21,000 IQD	54,000 IQD

Table 2: Breakdown of subscribers/citizens currently on Runaki by province:

	Kurdistan	Erbil	Slemani	Duhok
Subscribers	280,000	216,000	35,000	29,000
Citizens	1,106,000	860,000	132,000	114,000

The May bill amount includes the KRG’s decision to credit more than 1.4 billion Iraqi dinars to citizens to account for the difference between pilot tariffs and the new progressive Runaki tariffs. As a result:

• More than 60,000 households across Kurdistan have received credit, with the average credit per household in some neighbourhoods reaching up to 80,000 Iraqi dinars
• More than 10,000 households across Kurdistan have received zero bills in May – for example, in the Shadi neighborhood, where Project Runaki was launched last year, 90% of households have received a zero bill

Roughly 80% of households, in particular low-income households, will pay less for electricity under the Runaki initiative than they previously did for grid and generator electricity combined.

Prime Minister Masrour Barzani announced the Runaki program in October 2024. The KRG Council of Ministers unanimously adopted new, lower tariffs last month.

The KRG has promised to deliver 24-hour electricity to every home and business in the Kurdistan Region by the end of 2026. All major city centers will enjoy 24-hour access by the end of 2025.