Iran luxury cars to be barred from cheap fuel: report

TEHRAN (Reuters) – Drivers of luxury cars in Iran will no longer be able to buy heavily subsidized gasoline from June 21, official Iranian media reported on Sunday.

It is the latest change of a rationing system launched a year ago under which motorists can buy 120 liters per month at the price of 1,000 rials per liter (around 11 U.S. cents), some of the cheapest fuel in the world.


Iran is the world’s fourth-largest oil producer but lacks enough refining capacity for domestic needs, forcing it to import large amounts of gasoline and burdening its finances.

In a bid to curb consumption, it introduced rationing in June 2007. Until then, motorists could buy unlimited amounts of heavily-subsidized gasoline, forcing the state to spend an estimated $5 billion per year on imports.

Reuters