Closure of Offices and Schools in Iran Due to Gas Shortage; 17 Power Plants Lack Fuel

With the drop in temperature and the continued pollution in some areas of Iran, officials from 26 provinces announced the closure of schools to "manage energy consumption". Reports indicate that power plants in three provinces have halted operations. All educational levels in 23 provinces of Iran have been declared closed and remote for Tuesday, December 26, and government offices are also closed in most of these provinces. In Khuzestan province, schools in 22 cities, in Kerman province, schools in eight cities, and in Yazd province, elementary schools have been closed. Officials in these provinces have cited cold weather or dust and pollution, all referring to "energy management" and "preventing gas pressure drop in the national network". Continuing the closures implemented to manage energy consumption in Iran, West Azerbaijan province announced the continuation of school and office closures on Wednesday. The director of crisis management in Isfahan province also announced that all educational levels of schools and universities will be remote until the end of the current week. In Tehran, the provincial meteorological office stated that from today until Friday, local dust and accumulation of pollutants and a decrease in air quality, especially in busy urban areas, are expected. On Tuesday, Masoud Pezeshkian apologized to the public regarding the current situation. Provincial officials explained the closure of schools and offices in various parts of Iran in connection with "energy management" and "preventing gas pressure drop in the national network". Amid a cold wave in Iran, gas pressure has dropped due to increased household consumption to 600 million cubic meters. Meanwhile, Fars News Agency reported on Tuesday that "all power plants" in Golestan and Lorestan provinces have been shut down since Sunday, and the Mapna power plant in Bandar Abbas has also ceased operations due to gas cut-off ten days ago. This media outlet, close to the Revolutionary Guard, stated based on "Ministry of Energy statistics" that 8,000 megawatts of Iran's power plants, which supply electricity to 15 million people in the northern country, are on the verge of shutdown due to "lack of gas and diesel fuel" and 17 power plants do not have fuel for electricity generation. In recent days, due to fuel shortages including gas and liquid fuel, power outages have resumed across Iran. According to Hassan Mousavi, spokesman for the National Gas Company of Iran, about 850 million cubic meters of sweet gas were injected into the national network on Saturday, of which 601 million cubic meters (equivalent to 71%) were allocated to the household, commercial, and industrial sectors. This oil ministry official did not disclose the household consumption alone but only mentioned that the amount of gas consumed in the household, commercial, and industrial sectors increased by 17% compared to the same time last year. Aside from the high level of gas wastage in Iran's dilapidated network, it is unclear how much of the 850 million cubic meters was allocated for export to Turkey and Iraq and how much of it reached power plants and major industries and petrochemicals. Mohsen Paknejad, Iran's oil minister, also stated that all main pipelines and pressure boosting stations are in production mode. However, in recent days, reports of gas cut-off or pressure drop in East Azerbaijan, Razavi Khorasan, South Khorasan, Ardabil, and Mazandaran provinces have been published, with warnings about gas cut-off in northern provinces of Iran. This comes as severe cold has gripped northern Iran, with temperatures in some cities dropping to nearly minus 20 degrees Celsius. Masoud Pezeshkian, the President of Iran, has called for a two-degree reduction in home temperatures, and in the past two days, many members of his government have released similar video messages. The National Gas Company of Iran states that gas consumption is in a state of alert.