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.
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.
Qasem Soleimani was killed in a US drone strike near Baghdad International Airport in January 2020, a move Trump openly acknowledged ordering.
Brigadier General Iraj Masjedi, Deputy Coordinator of the Quds Force, denounced the operation, which also claimed the life of Iraqi militia leader Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, as a violation of international law.
“In my opinion, Trump has rendered the greatest service to the terrorist movement in the world, and he must pay for this pure blood,” Masjedi said on Wednesday on the death anniversary of Soleimani. He questioned the legal and moral grounds of the assassination, calling Soleimani “the main agent in the fight against terrorists.”
The US justified the strike by saying Soleimani was planning imminent attacks on American interests in the region. However, his death escalated tensions between Washington and Tehran, leading to Iranian missile strikes on US military bases in Iraq.
“America must leave the region”
Brigadier General Mohammadreza Naqdi, Deputy Coordinator of the IRGC, also called for the expulsion of US forces from the Middle East, describing the Ayn al-Asad missile strike in 2020 as a decisive statement of intent.
“The world understood how powerful the Islamic Republic is and how weakened America has become,” Naqdi said during an appearance on Iranian state television. However, he added, “America has not yet received its full answer.”
The Ayn al-Asad missile strike occurred on January 8, 2020, as a direct retaliation by Iran for Soleimani's killing. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) launched over a dozen ballistic missiles targeting the airbase in Iraq, which housed US and coalition forces. Another strike targeted a base near Erbil. This marked the first direct Iranian attack on US forces in decades and was one of the most significant escalations in US-Iran tensions.
The strike resulted in no immediate fatalities among US personnel, reportedly due to early warnings and evacuations.
Iran; however, portrayed the attack as a demonstration of its military capability and resolve.
Naqdi also defended Iran’s extensive role in the Syrian conflict, where Soleimani played a pivotal part in mobilizing Shi’a militias to support President Bashar al-Assad.
“Our presence in Syria was the most rational decision, as we sought to remove a significant threat to the Islamic Ummah,” Naqdi added, referring to Iran’s fight against ISIS.
Brigadier General Asghar Arabpour from Isfahan province also urged Iranian leaders to intensify efforts to hold Trump accountable.
“Addressing this case and Trump’s crimes requires greater seriousness from our country’s officials,” Arabpour said in an interview with ISNA.
He also criticized the broader US foreign policy under both Trump and President Joe Biden, arguing that American administrations prioritize Israeli security at the expense of Middle Eastern stability.
Five years after Soleimani’s targeted killing, Iran officials occasionally speak of revenge, keeping his death a cornerstone of their rhetoric against the United States.