Fuel Overview

In the past, Iran had limited domestic fuel refining capacity, and domestic demand relied on imports of refined products, especially gasoline. In response to international sanctions and the resulting difficulty in purchasing refined products, Iran’s domestic refining capacity expanded. As a result, since 2018 and after completion of several refinery projects, Iran stopped importing petrol and began exporting this product. Currently, Iran has a well-established infrastructure for fuel supply and storage, with numerous refineries and storage facilities strategically located across different regions.

One of the strategies to control inflation in the country have always been subsidizing petrol price. The significant price gap of petrol in Iran and neighbouring countries has increased the fuel trafficking.

Fuel distribution in Iran involves both government-owned companies and private distributors. The National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), a state-owned entity, plays a central role in fuel production, refining, and distribution. Additionally, several private companies are authorized to import, distribute, and sell fuel products under government regulations.

For more information on government and fuel provider contact details, please see the following links: 4.1 Government Contact List and 4.7 Fuel Providers Contact List.

Information may also be found at: http://www.mytravelcost.com/petrol-prices/ which is updated monthly. 

Fuel Pricing

Fuel prices are fixed by government of Iran. The government subsidies fuel and each car owner is entitled to certain amount of fuel in one month – 60 L – that can be purchased at the price of IRR 15,000 IRR. Thereafter, fuel can be purchased at price of 30,000 IRR.

Seasonal Variations 

Fuel Transportation

There is no pipeline to the main cities for fuel. The only pipelines are for Gas. Internal transportation of fuel products is carried out by Tankers. Road situation and transportation infrastructure and fleet are sufficient to handle current domestic needs as well as increased demand from the humanitarian community.  

Standards, Quality and Testing

Disclaimer: Inclusion of company information in the LCA does not imply any business relationship between the supplier and WFP / Logistics Cluster, and is used solely as a determinant of services, and capacities.

Please note: WFP / Logistics Cluster maintain complete impartiality and are not in a position to endorse, comment on any company's suitability as a reputable service provider.

For the first time 'Road Transport Deputy' was raised as one of the five deputies of the 'Road and Transport Ministry' in organizational structure in 1982. Establishing the special limited stock of public terminals of good vehicles was approved in 1988 in order to exploit, develop, maintain and construction of public terminals and en-route welfare-service complexes. After establishment of this company which its public council management affairs was undertaken by Road and Transport Minister, practically, part of current regulations in public transport affairs were carried-on by this governmental company.

In the 50th session of 'State Administrative High Council' according to the common proposal of the 'Road and Transport Ministry' and 'Civil Service and Administrative Affairs Organization' with separating the duties of Road and Transport from respective ministry organizations and integrating into 'Special Stock Company of Good Public Transport Terminals', State Terminals and Transport Organization was established and the first formation of 'State Terminals and Transport Organization' was approved in 1995. At the outset, this organization had two affiliated company in the name of 'Islamic Republic of Iran Transport Company' and 'IRI International Transport Company' which according to the ratification of High Council Administration 'IRI Transport Company' was separated from organization in 2002 and the name of the organization changed to 'Road Maintenance and Transport Organization'.

For the first time in 32 years, an Iranian national has been appointed as member of TIR Executive Board (TIRExB). From Iranian Customs Administration (ICA), Mr. Mostafa Ayati was elected by unanimous vote as a member of the TIR Executive Board (TIRExB), a subsidiary body of the TIR Administrative Committee, which is composed of 9 members. The TIRExB election took place during the sixtieth session of the TIR Administrative Committee in Geneva on 07 November 2018. The Convention has 28 members from the European Union (EU), America, China, Russia, CIS countries, Caucasus and Turkey. Previously, Iranians had been nominated for the position for three times though they failed to receive enough votes.

TIR Executive Board (TIRExB), a subsidiary body of the TIR Administrative Committee, is composed of 9 members, each from different Contracting Parties to the TIR Convention. The TIRExB supervises and provides support in the application of the TIR procedure at the national and international levels. 

The Customs Convention on the International Transport of Goods under Cover of TIR Carnets (TIR Convention, 1975) is one of the most successful international transport conventions and is so far the only universal Customs transit system in existence. To date, it has 70 contracting parties, including the European Union. It covers the whole of Europe and reaches out to North Africa and the Near and Middle East. More than 35,000 operators are authorized to use the TIR system and around 3 million TIR transports are carried out per year. The TIR Convention facilitates the international carriage of goods from one or more customs offices of departure to one or more customs offices of destination and through as many countries as necessary.

Approximately 428 million mt of goods were transited via Iran during the first quarter of the Iranian calendar year 2017-2018, according to an official at the Iranian Roads Maintenance Organization. Oil products accounted for 13.4 million mt and non-oil products constituted 6.8 million mt of transited goods in the three-month period, the official mentioned. The transited consignments mostly consisted of fuel, chemical materials, cotton, home appliances, and foodstuff. Iraq, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates were the main countries which transited goods via Iran.

Transit of goods via Iran roads by 27.9 percent in the past Iranian calendar year, which ended on March 20, compared to the year before. Over 12.3 million tons of goods were transited via the country in the previous calendar year.

Iran’s trucking fleet is largely available at the terminals. Companies are involved in both the provision of road transportation and shipping services (freight forwarders) and can provide internal transport services for food and non-food commodities.

There are very limited number of transport companies who own their own fleet. The drivers who have their own trucks are sub-contracted by truck agencies. Based on the latest statistics of Iran Road Maintenance and Transportation Organization, just 4% of whole trucks in Iran have ownership of the transport companies. 82% of trucks are in the ownership of drivers. 

More than 117 million mt of goods is a portion of international transport (import and export) during 2018 in Iran. 

The total number of different types of trucks in Iran is 423,000 which includes 144,000 containerized trailers, 4,200 Bonkers and Tankers (for different types of fuel), and around 270,000 other types of transporter trucks.   

For more information on transport company contact details, please see the following link: 4.8 Transporter Contact List.

Disclaimer: Inclusion of company information in the LCA does not imply any business relationship between the supplier and WFP / Logistics Cluster, and is used solely as a determinant of services, and capacities.

Please note: WFP / Logistics Cluster maintain complete impartiality and are not in a position to endorse, comment on any company's suitability as a reputable service provider.

The Ministry of Cooperatives, Labour and Social Welfare of Iran is responsible for planning and supervising the application of labour and cooperative law, comprehensive welfare and social security system and other relevant laws and regulations. This ministry at the beginning of each year indicates the minimum labour wage for general workers. The organizations should obey the minimum wage condition and the related insurance condition that is indicated by the Social Welfare Organization and the Tax Office of Iran. The Worker Social Services Department which is functioning under the management of the ministry is responsible for investigating the differences between the worker and the employer.

Iran’s telecommunications industry is almost entirely state-owned, dominated by the Telecommunication Company of Iran (TCI). Telecommunication Company of Iran, or TCI (Persian: شرکت مخابرات ایران‎) is the fixed-line incumbent operator in Iran offering services in fixed telephony, DSL, and data services for both residential and business customers, throughout the country. It was established in 1971 with a new organizational structure as the main responsible administration for the entire telecommunication affairs. 

TCI maintains 30 provincial subsidiaries and two brands - MCI (Hamrahe Avval or Mobile Company of Iran) and FCI (Ashenaye Avval or Fixed-line Company of Iran) that provide fixed-line telephone service, data services, mobile services, high-speed internet and soon wireless services. About 99% of the fixed-line telephone subscribers and 61% of the mobile subscribers in Iran belong to TCI's affiliates. 

In 2016 the Director of TCI announced the merger of its provincial subsidiaries and the MCI into a single business unit. TCI has utilized equipment and services such as digital switching centers, optical fiber cables, mobile phones, data networks, satellite services, and telephone special services. TCI manufactures more than 80% of the required equipment inside Iran. Iran Telecommunication Industries (ITI) was also founded in the same year to manufacture the required equipment for the national long-distance network. TCI has a monopoly over Iran's fixed-line infrastructure, and it was until 2010, Iran's largest cellular operator (MCI) and Internet service provider and data communication operator (DCI).

For more information on telecoms contacts, please see the following link: 4.11 Additional Services Contact List.

Telecommunications Regulations

Existing Humanitarian Telecoms Systems

UNHCR and UNICEF have similar radio equipment as WFP. There is a common radio room based in UN Common Premises and it’s operational 24/7 in Tehran and provides services to all UN agencies: UNODC, WHO, UNDP, UNICEF, UNHCR, WFP, and UNFPA. 

Internet Service Providers (ISPs)

There are 2 types of internet service providers in the country, Governmental and Private sector (which is also connected to the governmental hubs). ISP for UN Iran Fanap Telecom Company which is a private company.   

Mobile Network Operators (MNOs)

Mobile networks in Iran provide widespread coverage, especially in urban areas, with companies like the Mobile Telecommunication Company of Iran (MCI) and Irancell leading the market. These networks offer both voice and data services, catering to a large population across the country. However, while coverage is generally extensive, the reliability of mobile networks can vary, especially in remote or rural regions where infrastructure may be less developed.

For information on MNOs please visit the GSM Association website.

The wide range of temperature fluctuation in different parts of the country and the multiplicity of climatic zones make it possible to cultivate a diverse variety of crops, including cereals (wheat, barley, rice, and maize (corn)), fruits (dates, figs, pomegranates, melons, and grapes), vegetables, cotton, sugar beets, sugarcane and pistachios, nuts, olives, spices e.g. saffron (World's largest producer with 81% of the world's total output), raisin(world's third largest producer & second largest exporter), tea, tobacco, Berberis (world's largest producer) and medical herbs. More than 2,000 plant species are grown in Iran; only 100 of which are being used in pharmaceutical industries. The land covered by Iran's natural flora is four times that of Europe.

Wheat, rice, and barley are the country's major crops. The Iranian grain sector is highly regulated. Producers receive subsidized access to input costs such as fertilizer and pesticides, as well as a guaranteed support price for their crops.

Rice: Iran's total rice production stands at 2.2 million tons per annum whereas annual consumption is about three million tons. UAE, Pakistan, India, Thailand, and Indonesia are some of the countries that Iran imports rice from to cover their consumption needs. The average per capita consumption of rice in Iran is 45.5 kg, which makes Iranians the 13th biggest rice consumers. Rice is mostly produced in northern Iran. Rice has been cultivated for many years in Mazandaran and Gilan Province of Iran. In the Northern Province, many indica rice cultivars including Tarom, Gerdeh, Hashemi, Hasani, Neda, and Gharib have been bred by farmers.

Pistachio: Iran ranks as the world's largest pistachio producer and exporter followed by USA and Turkey. After oil and carpets, pistachios are Iran's biggest exports: about 200,000 tons for $840 million. More than 350,000 people earn a living from the nut, most of them in vast groves of the desert oases in the southeast. Iran's share in the global pistachio market reached 50 percent.

Saffron: Saffron is cultivated in many regions of the country, the provinces of North Khorasan, Khorasan Razavi, and South Khorasan in the northeast have the highest production share. Iran's saffron is exported to the United Arab Emirates, Spain, Japan, Turkmenistan, France, Italy and the US. The northeastern Khorasan Razavi province exported 57 tons of saffron worth $156.5 million to 41 countries. The high production cost comes from the exhaustive process of extracting the stamens from the flower and the number of flowers necessary to produce small amounts of spice but the process is in the process of being automated now. Iran is the largest producer of saffron with 93.7% of the world's total production.

Tea: Iran traditionally is a tea drinker country with lots of tea farmlands in the north of Iran. There are several tea packaging factories in Iran that either process the locally farmed tea or package the imported tea from India, Pakistan, or other East Asian countries.

Fruits: Iran is among the largest producers of berries and stone fruits in the world, especially pomegranates, dates, figs, and cherries.

Generic country information can be located from sources that are regularly maintained and reflect current facts and figures. For a general overview of country data related to the service and supply sectors, please consult the following source: 

The Observatory of Economic Complexity - MIT (OEC)

Disclaimer: Inclusion of company information in the LCA does not imply any business relationship between the supplier and WFP / Logistics Cluster, and is used solely as a determinant of services, and capacities.

Please note: WFP / Logistics Cluster maintain complete impartiality and are not in a position to endorse, comment on any company's suitability as a reputable service provider.