Gas prices have been frozen at about 34 cents per gallon for three years in the country, but high consumption has led to 40 percent of the nation’s gasoline coming from foreign sources — sources that may be hampered by United Nations sanctions aimed at the country’s nuclear weapons program, the Financial Times reported Friday.
The new price for rationed gas will be about 43 cents per gallon, with additional fuel sold at an inflated price.
The parliament set April 20 as the deadline for the government to decide on the size of the rations, the higher price of gas purchased beyond the rations and the method used to enforce rationing.
Mahmoud Abtahi, a deputy in the country’s parliament, predicted the price hike will cause a “severe shock because petrol is the life blood of the economy.” He said the new prices are unfair to low-income groups.
