Tehran, Iran, Dec. 31
By Milad Fashtami - Trend:
The falling trend of oil prices in global markets will definitely result in a considerable oil revenues cut.
Hassan Khosrojerdi, head of Iran Oil Products Exporters Union, said that the country can compensate that loss with collecting more taxes, Iran's IRNA News Agency reported on Dec. 31.
"The energy carriers' prices also need to be increased," he said.
"To pass this crisis, both the government and the private sector need to cooperate," Khosrojerdi added.
Falling global oil prices forced Iran's government to decrease the oil price figure in the proposed budget bill for the next Iranian calendar year to $72 per barrel from the current figure of $100.
Iran is expected to face severe budget deficit in the current Iranian calendar year (to end March 20, 2015).
The country decided to sell its crude oil to Asia in November at the biggest discount in almost six years. The decision was made after Saudi Arabia cut prices for all grades and to all regions for November. Qatar and Iraq decreased their prices as well.
Based on Iran's budget law, the country is supposed to export 1.4 million barrels of oil (including gas condensate) per day.
Reports suggest that if the current tendency continues, the total budget deficit may soar above $2.5 billion.
The Iranian President Hassan Rouhani also predicted that Iran's total oil revenues will be 30 percent less than expected.
Experts believe that due to the continuing fall of oil prices in global markets, a budget deficit in the next calendar year is also inevitable.