Iran's sacked oil minister has issued a parting warning to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, predicting a looming "catastrophe" in the Iranian energy sector because of high consumption.
"If we do not find a solution to the energy problem in the next 15 years, the country will face a catastrophe," Kazem Vaziri Hamaneh the ISNA student news agency quoted him saying late on Saturday.
"I am ready to prove that if the fuel situation continues along current trends, we will face an energy crisis in the future," he said.
"The current pattern of consumption is a disaster for the country."
The comments by Vaziri Hamaneh, who also revealed for the first time that he was sacked in a cabinet reshuffle last week, are a stark warning about the energy problems of a country rich in natural resources.
Iran is OPEC's number two crude oil producer and is also pinning major hopes on its gas reserves, estimated to be the second largest proven reserves in the world after Russia.
But frenzied consumption of petrol forces it to import millions of litres per day of refined oil to make up for a domestic shortfall. Wasteful heating methods also create gas shortages in winter. The government introduced petrol rationing in June in a bid to ease the immense strain on the budget of importing petrol for Iran's 70 million people, but it is still forced to import huge quantities of petrol daily.
A further problem comes from under-investment in its oil fields, an issue compounded by US action to prevent banks lending to Iran over its controversial nuclear programme.
The influential research centre of parliament also sounded a downbeat note on the future of Iran's gas industry, saying that exports would not be possible in the next 10 years given the scale of domestic consumption.
"If we do not find a solution to the energy problem in the next 15 years, the country will face a catastrophe," Kazem Vaziri Hamaneh the ISNA student news agency quoted him saying late on Saturday.
"I am ready to prove that if the fuel situation continues along current trends, we will face an energy crisis in the future," he said.
"The current pattern of consumption is a disaster for the country."
The comments by Vaziri Hamaneh, who also revealed for the first time that he was sacked in a cabinet reshuffle last week, are a stark warning about the energy problems of a country rich in natural resources.
Iran is OPEC's number two crude oil producer and is also pinning major hopes on its gas reserves, estimated to be the second largest proven reserves in the world after Russia.
But frenzied consumption of petrol forces it to import millions of litres per day of refined oil to make up for a domestic shortfall. Wasteful heating methods also create gas shortages in winter. The government introduced petrol rationing in June in a bid to ease the immense strain on the budget of importing petrol for Iran's 70 million people, but it is still forced to import huge quantities of petrol daily.
A further problem comes from under-investment in its oil fields, an issue compounded by US action to prevent banks lending to Iran over its controversial nuclear programme.
The influential research centre of parliament also sounded a downbeat note on the future of Iran's gas industry, saying that exports would not be possible in the next 10 years given the scale of domestic consumption.
Via: Gulf Daily News
