Iran's energy sector review

After a warning of Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani during his visit to Turkey on Nov.27 about dispatching NATO's Patriot defensive missiles near Turkey's border with Syria, some Iranian army generals threatened the western neighbour about the consequences of establishing Patriots. Turkey has more than 900 km length border with Syria which has been challenged by an internal war for about two years. Last month some Syrian bombs fell on Turkey's villages on the border and left several injured and dead. This is what Turkey has argued as to the reason of establishing defensive systems in the border area with Syria. However, senior advisor to the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's representative in Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Brigadier General Yadollah Javani said on Nov.27 that "Turkey will suffer much detriment from establishing patriots in their territory". The Syrian government is Iran's major ally and Tehran attemp...

After a huge decrease in smuggled fuel from Iran in 2011 because of cutting offered subsides in this field, fuel smuggling revived again during last few months due to the fall in the national currency's value. The Iranian government cut a part of fuel subsides in late 2010, raising prices significantly which led to a decrease in fuel smuggling from 10 million litres in 2008 to three million litres per day in early 2011, according to official statistics. However, after the drop of the rial's value versus the USD during the past few months by above 40 per cent when fuel prices remained unchanged, caused a revival in smuggling. Deputy oil minister Alireza Zeyqami said on Nov.25 that some six million litres of diesel is being smuggled from Iran each day. Gasoline smuggling has risen to two million litres per day during the past few months as well. There are several reasons. First, because of difference between the fuel price in Iran and its neighbours, for instance th...