ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Friday announced plans to double the price of gasoline purchased beyond the country's subsidized monthly quota, as Tehran grapples with fuel shortages and fresh US economic sanctions.
"The proposed price for this third-tier is about 10,000 tomans [$0.05], while the other quotas remain the same for now,” Pezeshkian said in an interview with state broadcaster IRIB. The proposed price represents a 100 percent increase from the current 5,000 tomans ($0.025) per liter.
Pezeshkian said Iran's imports and exports have fallen by between 25 and 35 percent due to US sanctions, with imports suffering the sharper decline.
He also said Tehran was ready to negotiate on condition that Washington commits to lifting sanctions and its maritime blockade.
The US and Israel launched an aerial military campaign against Iran in late February, prompting Tehran to retaliate by targeting US allies and positions across the region.
Mediation efforts led by Pakistan and other countries have since brought an end to the tit-for-tat attacks, with no major strikes reported by either side for weeks.
However, Tehran has imposed a blockade in the Strait of Hormuz, targeting ships passing through the strategic waterway without its permission. Washington has also imposed its own blockade in the strait, through which around one-fifth of global crude oil trade passed before the Iran war.
US President Donald Trump has repeatedly said in recent remarks that Washington is not engaged in talks with Tehran.
“We're not looking to meet or anything,” Trump said on Thursday.
Fuel prices are a sensitive issue in Iran. A similar increase in gasoline price in 2019 sparked widespread anger that developed into nationwide protests, with hundreds of people killed in a harsh crackdown by Iranian authorities.
Beyond concerns over prices, people inside Iran have reported gasoline queues stretching for up to a kilometer and waiting times of six to seven hours.
The shortages have also fueled an informal street trade, with vendors selling gasoline in jugs of various sizes. A 20-liter jug can sell for as much as 1.2 million tomans ($6).
Iran consumes around 135 million to 137 million liters of gasoline per day, while domestic refineries produce between 114 million and 130 million liters daily.
Tehran previously covered the shortfall through imports, but the US blockade of ships entering or leaving Iranian ports, which began in April, has restricted incoming fuel shipments.
The Iranian government currently sells gasoline at heavily subsidized rates. Motorists receive a monthly quota of 160 liters, including 60 liters at 1,500 tomans ($0.0075) per liter and another 100 liters at 3,000 tomans ($0.015) per liter.
Consumption beyond the 160-liter quota currently costs 5,000 tomans ($0.025) per liter.
According to Pezeshkian, refining one liter of gasoline in Iran costs around 130,000 tomans ($0.65). The government has proposed doubling the price of third-tier gasoline to reduce the financial burden.
.jpg&w=3840&q=75)