The plan aims to reduce consumption by 35% by converting wasteful gas flaring into wealth.

Iran's energy industry has reached a turning point in addressing its supply-demand imbalance, where reliance solely on "increased production" no longer suffices. Official statistics indicate about 22% of the country's produced energy is wasted in the supply and consumption chain. Under the seventh development plan, the country is required to return the equivalent of 200 million cubic meters of gas (equal to the output of 8 phases of South Pars) to the value chain through optimization. Here, the emergence of "Energy Operator Companies" is not a choice but a strategic necessity to replace government ad-hoc decisions with data-driven governance and private sector participation.

The new architect of the supply chain is the Operator Company, which acts as a "strategic partner" and "communication bridge" between the government and the consumer. These companies, focused on data and expertise, transform traditional supply chain flows. Their entry is based on agility, high economic incentive and the ability to "democratize energy management." By analyzing customer needs before consumption and using historical data, Operators simultaneously advance three layers of action: technical (e.g., renovating boiler rooms, upgrading heating equipment), managerial (analyzing consumption patterns, smart scheduling of equipment) and behavioral (educating and creating economic incentives for consumer behavior change).

Economic Logic and Energy Saving Certificates Market

The financial foundation of Operators' activities is "creating value from savings." In the gas value chain, prices have an upward trend. While the residential gas tariff, for example, is about 200 to 300 rials, the value of each cubic meter of gas in the Energy Exchange's savings market has reached nearly 18,000 rials. By reducing consumption in low-efficiency sectors, Operator Companies receive "Energy Saving Certificates" equivalent to the volume saved. These certificates are securities sold on the exchange at free market rates to large industries. This price difference is the driving engine for private sector investment in optimization. To ensure transparency and prevent rent-seeking, Operators enter through the "Energy Exchange" portal.

Qualification and Financial Discipline Criteria

The Ministry of Petroleum has set high standards to ensure real outputs for the qualification of 35 selected companies (so far). These criteria include financial capability (the company must have the ability to purchase gas on a million-scale and provide necessary liquidity for renovation projects), data-driven operations (the Operator must be able to analyze billions of consumption data points and use smart tools) and specialized networking (the ability to form consortiums with technical field experts such as in poultry farming or petrochemical industries).

Structural Separation

To ensure effective private sector participation, two separate contractual models are defined for Operator Companies. The first is the Retailer Operator. In this model, the Operator Company purchases gas in bulk from the National Iranian Gas Company at City Gate Stations and takes full responsibility for managing distribution, sales and customer services in a geographical area (such as a town or urban district). These companies' profit lies in reducing network loss and optimizing sales management.

The second type focuses on gas consumption optimization services. These companies are not directly involved in buying and selling gas, but focus on efficiency upgrade projects. By renovating subscribers' equipment, they reduce consumption volume and earn their revenue from "Energy Saving Certificates" issued for each cubic meter of gas saved.

A Win-Win-Win Game

The signing of 22 contracts between the private sector and the National Iranian Gas Company was one of the most important executive events in Iran's energy optimization history. Last Sunday, 22 operational contracts were signed in a ceremony between 11 provincial gas companies and a group of private sector Operator Companies. Covering key provinces including Isfahan, Razavi Khorasan, Qom, Kermanshah, Markazi, Yazd, Mazandaran, Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad, Kurdestan, Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari, and South Khorasan, these contracts encompass a wide range of activities from reducing consumption in residential and commercial sectors to renovating equipment in greenhouses, poultry farms, brick-making industries and office buildings. This move marks the official exit of consumption management from the realm of slogans and entry into the phase of "committed execution by the private sector."

Full implementation of these contracts promises a 25% to 35% reduction in consumption at the end of the chain. This is a triple win: for the government due to reduced imbalance and redirecting gas to productive, foreign-currency generating industries; for the private sector through the creation of a transparent and profitable investment market on the Energy Exchange; and for the people through equipment upgrades, reduced bill costs and improved air quality.