Local media reports on Wednesday said Iran’s interior ministry had issued an order to local utilities that ordered the immediate reduction in power supply to large manufacturers.
Economic website Tejarat News said in its report that cement and steel manufacturers were being asked to reduce their electricity consumption to 10% of their normal demand for the 15th day from May 15.
The Iranian Cement Producers Association confirmed the report and said the restrictions would certainly harm the production of the entire industry.
The two steel factories also said they could be forced to halt production activities at the factory in the next two weeks.
The decision to limit the power supply to the industry came amid increasing demand for cooling in the Iranian household sector.
Temperatures have recently reached record levels, with millions of households turning on air conditioning systems faster than expected.
Iran’s industry minister Mohammad Atabak has strongly criticized the decision to cut electricity supply to major manufacturers, saying that the cement, steel and aluminum industries would be a major blow from the decision.
Sources from the Iranian Ministry of Energy say that once the plant is repaired, domestic electricity supply will increase significantly in mid-June.
The ministry said Wednesday that the country’s electricity consumption peaked at 60.709 gigawatts (GW) on Tuesday, reaching around 6 GW from the same day last year.
Iran’s peak electricity demand reached a historic record of 85 GW last summer, with authorities saying consumption is comparable to the figures reported in industrialized countries like Germany, and three times more used than in a more populous country like Egypt.
MNA/