TEHRAN, Dec. 23 (UPI) -- Most of the oil and gas produced in Iran is reserved for domestic consumption, the Iranian president said in an energy-saving plan.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said his country was producing about 6.5 million barrels of oil equivalent per day. Of that, 2.3 million is exported while the remaining 4.2 million is reserved for domestic consumption, the Iranian Oil Ministry's Petroenergy Information Network reports.
Ahmadinejad went on to say Iran was underperforming in the energy sector because of waste and a lack of general efficiency.
Iran during the weekend cut subsidies for petrol, sending prices at the pump above $1 per gallon, a dramatic increase.
Ahmadinejad said he wanted to see consumers cut their energy use by as much as 25 percent and to make better use of current reserves.
Tehran said gasoline consumption was declining in the wake of the weekend move on subsidies. Daily consumption Saturday was reported at 16.8 million gallons before falling to 14 million gallons later in the week.
Faced with increasing pressure from punitive sanctions targeting its energy sector, Iran switched much of its petrochemical plants over to gasoline production. Observers said that move is expensive and is unlikely to resolve long-term energy issues in the Islamic republic.
