Report says gasoil exports cause shortage at Iranian power plants

A recent report released by the Iranian parliament said the country’s largest oil refinery sales this summer is behind the current fuel shortage in power plants across Iran that caused scheduled power cuts in many towns and cities.

News ID: 5633

Date: 23 December 2024 - 15:07

TABNAK, Dec 23: The Islamic Consultative Assembly’s Research Center said in its report that Iran’s Abadan Refinery had supplied some 1.3 billion liters of gasoil for sales at Iran’s Energy Exchange in July and August.

It said the sales, which were meant to generate hard currency revenues for the government, came at a time when the refinery was supposed to supply gasoil to Iranian power plants for their use during cold winter months when they are normally disconnected from the country’s gas grid.

The report described the decision to export gasoil, rather than supplying it to power plants, as strange, saying it has definitely been a reason why power plants are currently struggling with low fuel inventories.

The report said that gasoil storage at Iranian power plants had reached 1.81 billion liters in August, down from 3.175 billion liters in August 2023.

Total fuel storage at 146 power plants across Iran, including their storage of mazut, had declined by 36% over the same period, the report said.

The Iranian Oil Ministry said earlier this week that it was ramping up its production and supply of fuels to power plants, adding that the country's total fuel production had reached an all-time high of 320 million liters per day.

The Ministry said that refineries in Iran had produced more than 150 million liters per day of gasoil in the early days of December, delivering more than 52 million liters of it to power plants in the country.