Abdolvahab Sahlabadi, head of Iran’s Chamber of Industry, Mining, and Trade, told the state-run Mehr news agency about the state of production and industries: “The biggest crisis today for production units, in addition to economic pressures, is repeated power outages which have practically taken half of the country’s production capacity out of service… nearly 50% of factories in the country have gone out of service due to blackouts, and the constant switching on and off of electricity imposes enormous financial damages on industries.”
Power outages and the paralysis of industry and production: dimensions of an economic catastrophe
According to the state-run Mehr news agency on August 20, Sahlabadi said: “About 50% of the country’s factories have been taken out of productive operation due to repeated blackouts. These blackouts, which in areas such as Kashan and Aran va Bidgol are scheduled from August 26 until further notice, three days a week (Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays) from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m., have imposed enormous financial damages on industries.” This situation has not only disrupted the production chain but also destroyed raw materials and left workers in a state of livelihood uncertainty.
The Real Price of Electricity for Industries in Iran Has Increased Up To 30 Times
Roots of the crisis: decaying infrastructure and mismanagement
A large portion of industrial machinery in Iran is outdated and worn out, and raw materials are often low-quality and supplied with delays. These factors, along with low efficiency and high energy consumption, have caused industrial units to operate at best only 14 to 17 days a month, with just two to three days of effective work per week.
Power outages have exacerbated this vicious cycle and pushed the country’s industrial economy to the brink of collapse. These blackouts have not only halted production but also endangered the economic security and livelihoods of millions of Iranians.
Sahlabadi also stated about natural gas cuts for industries: “Just as industries and production suffer from blackouts in the summer, in the winter the problem of gas shortages will recur. This issue existed last year and will be much worse this year; for example, cement factories are forced to work several hours or even several days less each week, which also affects people’s daily lives.”
Structural corruption and the role of the regime in deepening the crisis
The roots of this crisis go beyond technical problems and stem from entrenched structural corruption and mismanagement in the government. Non-transparent policies, misallocation of resources, and prioritizing the interests of power-linked groups over infrastructure development have trapped the country in a whirlpool of inefficiency. A regime that has for decades spent national resources on repression, censorship, and unnecessary projects has lost the ability to meet society’s basic needs, including providing reliable electricity and modern industrial infrastructure.
The ineffectiveness of reforms within Khamenei’s oppressive rule
Past decades of experience show that Iran’s regime, because of power concentrated in the hands of one dictator, is not reformable. Today’s environmental, economic, and social crises—including power outages, water shortages, and the collapse of production—are the direct result of the regime’s policies. Widespread blackouts, which have paralyzed half of the country’s production, are only one sign of the crisis.
The current situation in Iranian society, with accumulated economic, social, and political discontent, is extremely explosive. Blackouts, lack of water, and the collapse of production are only part of the hardships that the people of Iran have endured under the current regime.
