From my perspective, as a son and servant of the people in the oil industry, the secret to the endurance of this exceptional nation throughout the many ups and downs of our land’s history has been precisely this: solidarity at times of necessity and unity in moments of hardship. Despite the expansion in the scale and scope of sanctions and hostilities, our country, Iran, has been able—thanks to such a conscious people—to pass safely through critical turning points. A collective passage through the current phase, with the people’s support, will have a decisive impact on the outcome of policies designed to manage the country’s energy imbalance.

The issue of fuel imbalance has been one of the most significant threats to the nation’s energy security in recent years. For various reasons, growth in domestic demand had reached a point where, had the previous trend continued, the country would soon have faced even greater challenges.

In recent months, average gasoline consumption in the country has reached unprecedented levels. The National Iranian Oil Company, the National Iranian Gas Company, the National Petrochemical Company, and the National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Company each play a role, within their operational mandates, across parts of the broad and complex chain of gasoline production, supply, and distribution. For my fellow citizens, the only point of contact with this vast and intricate chain is a few minutes spent at a gas station. Yet behind those brief moments of service lie thousands of kilometers of pipelines, maritime fleets, import terminals and storage facilities, ten major refineries, hundreds of vehicles and fuel depots, and thousands of devoted sons and daughters of Iran who make possible the comfort and ease of those few minutes at the pump.

Over recent years, Iran has shifted from being a gasoline-exporting country to a gasoline importer. At the same time, constructing large refineries solely to meet rapidly growing domestic demand is neither economically justified nor feasible given operational and financial constraints. The notion that the country should build a major refinery every few years to supply domestic gasoline needs is neither economically sound nor practically attainable. Therefore, step-by-step transformation of gasoline consumption patterns is essential.

Meanwhile, alongside the development of consumption-optimization plans and reforms to the gasoline distribution structure, efforts are underway to increase domestic production at existing refineries, improve product quality, and construct medium-capacity refineries by the non-governmental sector. Over the past 15 months, the Ministry of Oil has mobilized all available legal capacities to accelerate these projects, remove obstacles, and ensure proper oversight. We hope that in the near future, with reduced domestic consumption resulting from optimization policies and distribution reforms, and with new refineries coming online, Iran will once again become an exporter of petroleum products.

The belief that Iran—a country with such vast capacities—should not rely on gasoline imports to meet domestic needs, and that the root problem lies in inefficient consumption requiring reform of the fuel system, goes beyond economic considerations and the risks of import dependence. It reflects a broader intellectual and philosophical framework that has been repeatedly emphasized by the Leader of the Islamic Revolution on various occasions. Years ago, when daily gasoline consumption hovered around 100 million liters, he warned officials that “consuming more than 100 million liters of gasoline per day is another example of poor use of domestic capacities and resources,” and urged the Ministry of Oil and other authorities to pursue ways to reduce consumption. The current government’s recent action to implement a calm, tension-free transformation in the gasoline distribution structure is undoubtedly an important step toward realizing that forward-looking vision, which views misuse of national capacities as a serious risk to Iran’s economic and political governance and obliges officials to design consumption-reduction strategies.

Beyond the guidance of the Supreme Leader, during Dr. Pezeshkian’s tenure as president, the issue of energy imbalance—particularly in gasoline and gas—has been central to his concerns. In nearly all public speeches and private meetings, we have witnessed repeated warnings about inefficient consumption, calls for national participation and inter-agency cooperation, and his persistent follow-up with officials to improve the situation.

Under the new gasoline plan—implemented in accordance with existing laws and approved by the Cabinet—the Ministry of Oil has served solely as the executing body and has participated in operational working groups. As a member of the Cabinet, however, I am aware that the 14th government, in preparing and drafting this plan, paid meticulous attention to all its impacts, especially its effects on people’s livelihoods and various professional and occupational groups. Naturally, one reason for the plan’s public acceptance is the people’s awareness of, and confidence in, the government’s approach toward those most affected.

Traditionally, the Ministry of Oil has identified facilities, wells, hydrocarbon fields, oil and gas platforms, refineries, and transmission lines as its principal assets and frequently highlights them. I wrote this note for one reason only: to say that in this period, all those operational assets are secondary. The Ministry of Oil’s primary asset is the people of Iran. This ministry emerged from the people themselves and symbolizes the Iranian people’s will to control their national wealth. The Ministry of Oil draws strength from a nation that regards oil—and, by extension, gas and petroleum products—as a national, intergenerational asset.

These are the people who, in southern or warmer cities, during times of intense cold and constraints on gas distribution, do not forget their compatriots in Azerbaijan, Kurdistan, and Khorasan—and by lowering the temperature in their own homes, bring warmth to others. The people who stand in solidarity with the government they elected, even amid changes to gasoline pricing and distribution structures. The people who understand that any plan for reforming distribution systems, quotas, or prices of petroleum products is driven by the goal of improving the country and resolving its challenges.

From the bottom of my heart, I firmly believe that with such an aware and united people—such a forward-looking nation—it is possible to overcome the core issue of energy imbalance and achieve a state of energy equilibrium. This nation makes every victory possible. Energy imbalance, though complex and formidable, has shown—through the recent experience of my colleagues in the Ministry of Oil—that no matter how great the challenge, it must yield to the will of a nation determined to overcome it.

By Mohsen Paknejad

Oil Minister of Iran

*The article originally appeared on the Persian daily Iran on December 21, 2025.