Hassan Abbaszadeh, NPC’s managing director, said that under the decree, establishing water-intensive industries in inland regions is now prohibited. However, he added that value chain projects completing existing industrial chains may still be developed in provinces such as Fars.

The Cabinet approved the executive bylaw for implementing the national land use plan in May, following a proposal by the Plan and Budget Organization. The bylaw, consisting of 13 articles, designates the Supreme Council of Land Use Planning as the authority responsible for overseeing the national and provincial land use strategies. It also requires all executive bodies to fully comply with the decisions of the 80th meeting of the Government’s Deregulation and Business Environment Improvement Board regarding business licensing.

According to the bylaw, approval of any project or plan by provincial planning and development councils now depends on obtaining a compliance certificate confirming alignment with national and provincial land use documents. It also mandates that relevant agencies define and communicate specific environmental requirements for each project.

Furthermore, the decree stipulates that water- and energy-intensive industries—prioritized for establishment along Iran’s southern coasts based on national land use plans—will lose eligibility for state incentives, exemptions, and discounted utilities if located elsewhere without clear territorial necessity or comparative advantage. In such cases, their water, electricity, fuel, and feedstock costs will be calculated at full market prices.

The bylaw also requires the Ministry of Industry, Mine and Trade—together with the Ministry of Energy, the Ministry of Oil, the Department of Environment, and the Plan and Budget Organization—to prepare a list of water- and energy-intensive industries for approval by the Supreme Council.