Iran's government is urging consumers to limit their use of heavily subsidised natural gas after US and Israeli attacks damaged gas-processing plants and other energy infrastructure, worsening seasonal shortages on the domestic market. First vice-president Mohammad Reza Aref called for public co-operation in energy conservation to keep the gas network stable and ensure uninterrupted supply to cold and remote regions during the winter months. He said users who over-consumed would face higher tariffs, and threatened those who fail to heed the warnings with cuts in their gas supply. Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf called for a nationwide drive to cut natural gas consumption by 10 per cent. The government has also asked public sector employees whose jobs can be done remotely to work from home at least two days a week to reduce fuel consumption and traffic.
The US-Israeli war on Iran, launched in February, has seriously affected the gas-processing facilities on which the country's energy infrastructure depends. In March, air strikes on processing plants serving South Pars, the world's largest gasfield shared with Qatar, cut daily production capacity by about a fifth. Energy authorities say less than half of the lost capacity has been restored, leaving a domestic shortfall of about 400mn cubic metres a day this year. President Masoud Pezeshkian criticised the attacks, saying they had endangered global energy security and the world economy.
With annual production capacity of about 300bn cubic metres, Iran is the world's third-largest gas producer. However, state subsidies that keep prices low for its 90mn people mean almost all output is used domestically. Iran also exports 13bn cubic metres a year, primarily to Turkey and Iraq. Sanctions, under-investment and an imbalance between processing capacity and demand have long been problems, and the war has deepened the crisis.
Iran has been negotiating a deal to import gas from Russia under a memorandum of understanding signed in 2024. Under the plan, Tehran would eventually import 55bn cubic metres of gas annually through Azerbaijan. Caretaker oil minister Hamid Bovard said in Moscow that talks were progressing, even as the country's crude exports have fallen to nearly zero under a months-long US blockade of its southern ports.
Source: Financial Times Companies · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing