NIGC Mulls Gas Tariff Increase

Natural gas price hike in the household sector by 150% can help reduce demand by at least 10%, the head of Research and Development Department in the National Iranian Gas Company said.
"Per capita gas consumption in Iran is seven times higher than the global average and to address the worsening crisis, a rise in tariffs seems to be the most effective short-term solution," Mohsen Mazloum Farsibaf was also quoted as saying by ISNA. 
Consumers are currently charged 0.5 cent per cubic meters on average between November and March (cold season) and tariffs rise by 500% to reach an average of 3 cents between April and September (hot season).
“Although inflation is high because the current natural gas prices are low, increasing tariffs by 2.5 times in the household sector will not adversely affect people’s purchasing power. Natural gas is different from gasoline as the latter is tightly linked to all sectors of the economy, but the former is not a contributory factor,” the official said 
The government raised pump prices in Nov. 2019 by 50%, from 10,000 rials to 15,000 rials for subsidized fuel (allocating a monthly 60 liters per car) and by 200% for unsubsidized gasoline, which led to widespread public protests.
The NIGC official warned there could be a shortage of nearly 200 million cubic meters of gas in the coming winter as demand is expected to increase by 10% year-on-year.