New fuel pricing targets consumption above ۱۱۰ litres monthly, doubling costs to ۱۰۰,۰۰۰ riyals per litre.
Published On ۸ Sep ۲۰۲۶
Iran has raised petrol prices for motorists again as the government struggles to manage declining revenues and sustain a costly subsidy regime.
The price of petrol will remain the same for the first ۶۰ litres (۱۶ gallons), state media reported, but there will be a higher price bracket for the next ۵۰ litres (۱۳ gallons). Prices will double from ۵۰,۰۰۰ riyals to ۱۰۰,۰۰۰ riyals ($۰.۰۷) per litre (۰.۳ gallons) for motorists who consume more than ۱۱۰ litres (۲۹ gallons) a month.
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Iran has some of the lowest petrol prices in the world, but due to ongoing economic difficulties amid the war with the US, including punishing sanctions and a siege on Iranian ports by US forces, Iranian officials have for months considered adjusting fuel subsidies to make up for lost revenues.
“If we consume it properly, we can manage with the amount of gasoline we produce in the country,” Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, speaker of the Iranian parliament, said in a TV address earlier this month. “What is clear is that we need to save gasoline in our consumption. Of course, part of the responsibility for this high consumption does not lie with our people; it lies with our industry.”
Iran depends on oil exports for about ۹۰ per cent of its budget, but these have declined from about ۴ million barrels per day (bpd) to about ۲.۲ million bpd in August. The country is also consuming more oil than it produces domestically.
In a sign of the energy crisis, videos circulating on social media reportedly show long queues at petrol stations in Tehran.
It is the second time petrol prices have increased since December, with concerns about further increases prompting unrest.
Huge antigovernment protests in late December ۲۰۲۲ and early ۲۰۲۳ started after anger over fuel price increases. Iranians are already feeling the impact of a downturn in economic activity, high inflation, and a drop in the value of the rial.
