Saeid Tavakoli said a new consumption record was set Thursday as demand in the household, commercial and small industrial sectors reached 737 million cubic meters, equal to about 85% of total gas production. He said the network’s stability was maintained despite colder weather.

“Our colleagues in the gas industry achieved something remarkable by keeping the network stable under these conditions,” Tavakoli said. “We are proud that, despite high nationwide gas consumption, there were no outages in the household and commercial sectors.”

Asked whether consumption could rise further, Tavakoli said it is not expected to exceed that level. However, if cold weather persists this week, demand is likely to remain around current levels and not fall below 700 million cubic meters, he said.

Tavakoli added that sweet gas production at the country’s refineries is operating at a satisfactory level.

He urged consumers to continue conserving energy, saying measures such as lowering indoor temperatures by 2 degrees and maintaining comfort temperatures between 18 and 21 degrees Celsius are crucial to sustaining the gas network’s stability.