Iran to ration petrol

Iran has said it will stop importing petrol in September and begin rationing it, ironic for a country that is OPEC's number-two exporter of crude oil. Iran's refineries have a capacity of 40 million litres of petrol a day, but demand is close to 70 million litres. Petrol is extremely cheap in Iran thanks to massive subsidies. A litre of regular petrol costs just 800 rials (9 US cents, or 34 cents a gallon).

A surge in car ownership and petrol smuggling to Iran's neighbours, where prices are far higher, has caused an explosion in demand. A government initiative aims to put the brakes on domestic petrol consumption by limiting access to subsidised fuel. It stipulated that car owners would be provided with "smart cards" that allow petrol purchases at subsidised rates up to a fixed ceiling, above which motorists would have to pay the full price.

Despite Iran's huge oil and gas reserves, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has stressed the importance of exploring alternative energy sources. "Proper management of resources, turning to substitute fuels ... and allocating objective-oriented subsidies in the energy sector are among ways to make optimum use of the country's energy reserves," he told MPs.

(2006-06-28 12:26:04 SGT) [Energy] Permalink

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