Iran reports sharp rise in household gas demand
Iran has reported a sharp rise in household and commercial demand for natural gas amid a new cold spell that has pushed temperatures down to as low as minus 8 degrees Celsius in parts of the country.
The National Iranian Gas Company (NIGC) said on Tuesday that household and commercial gas consumption reached 610 million cubic meters (mcm) over the previous 24 hours.
The head of NIGC’s dispatching operations said the figure accounted for around 70% of Iran’s total gas demand.
Gholamreza Kushki warned that the continuing cold weather could drive household and commercial gas consumption to as much as 650 mcm per day in the coming days.
His remarks followed figures released Tuesday by the Oil Ministry’s news service showing that household and commercial gas demand had averaged 533 mcm in the week ending December 12, with peak consumption of 546 mcm recorded on December 6.
NIGC’s latest figures represent a 14% increase compared with those levels, which the company attributed to widespread use of heating systems in homes and businesses.
Authorities said temperatures had fallen to minus 2 degrees Celsius in mountainous areas of Tehran province, where the capital is located, and to minus 8 degrees Celsius in the central province of Isfahan.
Iranians rely heavily on natural gas for heating and cooking, unlike in many countries where gas is primarily used to fuel power plants that generate electricity for households.
Iran is the world’s fourth-largest consumer of natural gas after the United States, Russia, and China, with peak winter demand nearing 900 mcm per day during particularly cold spells.
The country is also the world’s third-largest natural gas producer, with a capacity to produce nearly 1 billion cubic meters of unprocessed gas per day.
To manage winter demand, authorities typically restrict gas supplies to some industries and power plants during cold periods to prioritize household heating needs.
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