Azerbaijan, Baku, Mar.3 / Trend F.Mehdi/
More than four million liters of smuggled fuel have been discovered and seized in southeastern part of Iran during the first eleven months of the current Iranian calendar year, which began on March 20, 2012, IRNA reported.
The smuggled fuels included gasoline, kerosene, and diesel. The amount of seized fuels was 40 percent higher compared with the same period in the previous year.
After a huge decrease in smuggled fuel from Iran in 2011 because of cutting offered subsides in this field, fuel smuggling revived again during last few months due to the fall in the national currency's value.
The Iranian government cut a part of fuel subsides in late 2010, raising prices significantly which led to a decrease in fuel smuggling from 10 million liters in 2008 to three million liters per day in early 2011, according to official statistics.
However, after the drop of the rial's value versus the USD during the past few months by above 40 per cent when fuel prices remained unchanged, caused a revival in smuggling.
Deputy oil minister Alireza Zeighami said on Nov.25 that some six million liters of diesel is being smuggled from Iran each day. Gasoline smuggling has risen to two million liters per day during the past few months as well.
Gasoline consumption in Iran has risen by one billion liters during the first ten months of the current Iranian calendar year, which began on March 20, 2012, compared to the same period in the preceding year, the Shana News Agency reported.
Gasoline consumption hit 60 million liters per day in the tenth calendar month of Day (December 21, 2012-January 19, 2013), showing 7.3 percent growth compared to the same month last year.
Deputy Manager of National Iranian Oil Products Distribution Company (NIOPDC) Naser Sajjadi has said that Iran's gasoline consumption increases by five per cent each year.
He also said that considering the official reference rate of 12,260 rials to the US dollar, the real price of gasoline in Iran is 10,000 rials (about 82 U.S. cents).
Currently gasoline is sold at two prices: a 60 liter monthly allowance at 4000 rials (33 cents) per liter and any amount above that at 7000 rials (57 cents) per liter.