Energy planning and policy making; The case study of Iran

Due to the limited resources of fossil fuels, energy supply-demand management and planning especially in the supply-side of the energy system have increasingly become very important. This article assesses Iran's energy system in order to find the main causes of the considerably high energy intensity in the country compared with similar economies in size and production. Accordingly, fundamental policies and strategies are proposed in order to manage the recognized bottlenecks. The conclusions suggest strongly that not only the fossil-based energy system, but also incompatible patterns of production and consumption in the reference energy system as well as the use of conventional technologies in the energy system have contributed to the high level of energy intensity in Iran. Therefore, production cannot supply the domestic demand, especially in the case of natural gas, which could decrease energy security by increasing the supply risks in the near future.