Fixing Iran's gas shortages needs $45 billion, says oil minister

Iran needs $45 billion in investment to resolve its chronic winter energy deficit and worsening air pollution, the country's Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad said on Wednesday.

The funds are crucial to boost gas production to meet targets set by Iran's long-term development plan, which on paper inform budgets and industrial policies.

"According to the Seventh Development Plan, gas production must reach 1 billion and 380 million cubic meters per day by the end of the plan," Paknejad said. "To achieve this goal, $45 billion of investment is required."

The majority of this funding, he explained, must be directed towards developing gas fields and upgrading related infrastructure.

Successive Irani governments have struggled to meet soaring consumption, especially during colder months when power plants are forced to burn polluting fuels that compound the problem of air quality in urban areas.

Iran possesses vast reserves of natural gas, but rising domestic demand and lack of investment to maintain and expand the infrastructure means the country is often a net-importer of energy.

Paknejad outlined a two-pronged approach to tackle the crisis, emphasizing the urgent need for substantial investment as well as consumption management.

"More important than increasing production is managing demand and optimizing consumption," he said, emphasizing the need for greater efficiency in domestic gas usage.

Over 860 million cubic meters of processed natural gas (sweet gas) are delivered to Iran's national grid daily, the oil minister said, more than three-quarters of which is taken up by households, businesses, and small industries.

The government has called on Iranians to limit their use, but seem reluctant to press harder on the issue, mindful of the widespread discontent in the country.

Iran's oil minister alluded to this reality, while suggesting that resource management and optimization lagged behind production growth.

"Any reform in the energy consumption system should be accompanied by considering the living conditions of the people," Paknejad said.