Mostafa Nakhaei emphasized that there is no straightforward short-term solution to address the energy imbalance and that fundamental action is needed.

The lawmaker addressed winter power outages and fuel supply for power plants.

"The energy imbalance is a serious issue that grows more critical every year," he said.

Nakhaei noted that in the first half of the current Iranian year (March 20-September 21), less natural gas was supplied to power plants compared to the same period last year which indicates that liquid fuel reserves were depleted instead of being stored.

He stressed that despite several meetings with relevant authorities to prevent energy shortages, no quick solutions exist to resolve the imbalance, saying "We must hope for a gradual reduction in these discrepancies."

Need for diversified power plant fuel mix

Nakhaei argued that the situation could have been avoided if government agencies had fulfilled their obligations. "Currently, power plant efficiency stands at 30% to 35%, whereas it should legally reach 50% to 55%," he explained.

The MP also underscored the importance of diversifying the energy mix for power generation. "Many advanced countries incorporate coal into their energy portfolio, yet its share in our country remains zero."

He criticized the country's low energy efficiency and high energy consumption intensity, saying these issues are incompatible.

Despite this, the lawmaker acknowledged the significant achievement of delivering millions of liters of liquid fuel to power plants daily, given the existing infrastructure, and expressed gratitude to the NIOPDC for its efforts.

Looking ahead, Nakhaei warned of anticipated severe cold spells and said recent outages were implemented to increase liquid fuel reserves.

As part of the parliamentary agenda, he highlighted efforts to reduce energy wastage, improve energy efficiency, establish an energy optimization fund, and create an energy efficiency organization.

"We hope these measures will be finalized soon to mitigate the imbalance," he concluded.