Azerbaijan, Baku, Sept. 27/ Trend M. Moezzi
The process of divesting and privatizing 100 companies that were subsidiaries of Iran's Energy Ministry has been finished.
Majid Namjoo, Iran's Energy Minister, told Mehr news agency that privatization is one of the most important measures in cutting costs at the ministry.
The Energy Ministry has also prepared more than 45 power plants for divestiture, Namjoo said.
Privatizing the companies that fall under its umbrella will cut costs at the Energy Ministry and those lower costs will be passed on to the public, the minister said.
Under Article 44 of the Iranian Constitution, which regulates the issues of economics and finance in the country, the Iranian economy is divided into three sectors: public, private and cooperative.
In 2004, the article was amended to allow selling 80 percent of the state assets of large companies.
In 2007, when 70 percent of industrial production was owned by the state, the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei ordered that government officials speed up implementation of the policies outlined in the amendment to Article 44 and move toward economic privatization.