Qaimpanah: The 80,000-Toman Gasoline Plan Is Not on the Government's Agenda at All
Long-term anti-smuggling idea hinges on aligning energy prices with international levels and fair subsidy distribution, not an immediate policy
IRNA reports Mohammad-Jafar Qaimpanah saying the 80,000-toman gasoline plan is not on the government's agenda; any price balancing would require wage adjustments, and the longer-term anti-smuggling idea focuses on aligning energy prices with international levels and fair subsidy distribution.
Tehran - IRNA - Mohammad-Jafar Qaimpanah, the executive head of the president's office, said that the plan to set gasoline prices at 80,000 tomans is not on the government's agenda at all. He explained that balancing fuel prices would depend on balancing wages and salaries, and that his remarks yesterday were an idea for a long‑term approach to countering fuel smuggling rather than a current policy.
He recalled comments made during a visit to the Anti-Smuggling and Currency Exchange Headquarters, noting discussions about daily fuel smuggling of about 30 million liters and concerns over currency allocation and smuggling. He said that in the long term, if fuel smuggling is to be addressed, there is no option but to align the prices of energy carriers with international levels and to distribute subsidies to the public fairly. He added that the authority’s emphasis on identifying corruption chokepoints centers on the price differentials between Iran and neighboring countries, and that without fixing these gaps, smuggling will continue.
Qaimpanah reiterated that there is no intention to raise gasoline and diesel prices now; instead, the idea was to highlight corruption points and advocate for fair subsidy distribution, noting that wealthier households with homes, villas and multiple cars consume more subsidies than poorer ones, which he called unfair.