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Iran's Energy Crisis Forces Industries to Shut Down

(New York Times) Farnaz Fassihi - Iran finds itself in a full blown energy emergency as government offices are closed or operating at reduced hours, schools and colleges have moved to online only, highways and shopping malls have descended into darkness, and industrial plants have been denied power, bringing manufacturing to a near halt. Faced with a gas deficit of 350 million cubic meters a day, the government either had to cut gas service to residential homes or shut down the supply to power plants that generated electricity. It chose the latter. By Friday, 17 power plants had been completely taken off line and the rest were only partially operational. In February, Israel blew up two gas pipelines in Iran as part of its covert war with the country, exacerbating the energy crisis. As a result, the government quietly tapped into emergency gas reserves which it has not been able to replenish. Natural gas accounts for 70% of Iran's sources of energy. "Iran is not able to produce as much electricity as it needs, and at the same time it is not able to reduce its consumption," said Esfandyar Batmanghelidj, chief executive of the Bourse & Bazaar Foundation, a London-based economic think tank. "It's very difficult to keep this going."
2024-12-22 00:00:00
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