The continued disruption of government work in several governorates in Iran due to high gas consumption economy

The Iranian authorities announced the disruption of working hours in government offices and educational centers in a number of governorates, including Tehran, after gas consumption increased by 16% during the past days, and this led to pressure on energy supplies.

The procedures included converting school study into the virtual education system, in addition to disrupting working hours in other governorates such as East Azerbaijan, Isfahan, Faris, and Khorasan Radwa, in an attempt to manage consumption during the winter.

Iran is facing annually a significant increase in gas consumption during the cold season, and this puts the supply network under increased pressure.

These developments come despite Iran possessing the second largest natural gas reserve in the world, with its confirmed reserves about 29.6 trillion cubic meters, equivalent to 15.8% of the total global reserve.

Nevertheless, official data indicates that the consumption of gas inside Iran exceeds 692 million cubic meters per day this winter, with about 74% of it allocated to the residential and commercial sector and small industries, and this limits the country’s ability to export gas or use it in industrial sectors and energy stations efficiently.

This situation comes in light of continuous discussions on the challenges of managing energy resources in the country, as the competent authorities seek to improve consumption efficiency and infrastructure development.

At the same time, the increasing demand for gas, especially during peak periods, remains a major factor in drawing energy policies in the short and long term, amid efforts to enhance production and expand distribution networks to keep pace with the increasing needs.

Production restrictions

According to energy expert Hamid Reda Shakouhi, the lack of gas in Iran is due to several factors, most notably the increase in consumption and the absence of diversity in energy sources, as the country relies heavily on natural gas, as it constitutes more than 70% of the total energy consumed, compared to other countries dependent On a variety of energy, it includes electricity, renewable energy and other sources.

Shkohi explained to Al -Jazeera Net that Iran’s possession of the second largest gas reserve in the world prompted it to adopt a strategy based on pumping huge amounts of gas, but the low price of gas locally led to high consumption rates, in the absence of effective policies to rationalize it, such as the standards of building energy stations Or impose restrictions on the consumption of heating devices.

He pointed out that external sanctions constitute two main obstacles in front of the Iranian gas sector, as it negatively affects investment and technical development, pointing out that Iran needs to attract huge investments and advanced technologies such as the pressure enhancement platforms to ensure that production continues efficiently.

In this context, Shakuhi referred to the contract that Tehran concluded with the French company Total in 2017 to develop a pressure platform in the 11th southern Fars field with Qatar, but the project stopped after the United States withdrew from the nuclear agreement in 2018, and this prevented the transfer of technology that Iran was counting on it to relieve pressure in other fields.

Shkouhi saw that the disruption of educational and governmental institutions did not represent a long -term solution, but rather a temporary procedure aimed at reducing pressure on the supply network.

He added that the government is trying, through this vacation, to avoid cutting gas from factories, petrochemicals and power stations, but it has not fully succeeded in that, as it is still obliged to legalize gas supplies to the productive sector, and this negatively affects the economy and industry.

He stressed that the fundamental solution to this crisis lies in increasing investments in the gas sector, developing pressure enhancement techniques, and improving consumption efficiency, as well as investing in renewable energy sources such as solar power plants, in order to ensure energy security and reduce excessive dependence on natural gas.

The effect of penalties

For his part, economist Isaac Saidian says that the infrastructure of the oil and gas sectors in Iran dates back to more than 45 years, and has not witnessed extensive development and modernization during the past decades.

He explained to Al -Jazeera Net that the renewal of these infrastructure requires huge investments, whether local or foreign, in addition to attracting modern technologies to enhance efficiency and increase production.

Saidian pointed out that the sanctions imposed on Iran constitute a major obstacle to the flow of investments to the energy sector, but he explained that some internal policies also contribute to reducing the ability of some companies to invest in the country, and this exacerbates the challenges facing the sector.

With regard to the impact of the disruption of institutions, Saidian stressed that this procedure does not represent a radical solution to the crisis, but rather is a temporary musk, indicating that its repercussions extend to the gross domestic product in the medium term.

He explained that cutting gas from the power stations leads to the disruption of factories, and this negatively affects industrial production, noting that this productive shortage in the winter may be reflected in the decrease in the ability of factories to work at full capacity during the summer, which affects the rates of economic growth in the country .