Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 22
By Umid Niayesh - Trend:
Iranian airlines owe some 8.74 trillion rials (about $291 million based on official rate of 30,000 rials per each USD) to the National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Company (NIORDC).
The figure was about 5.37 trillion rials in 2013, meanwhile the figure has increased by 62 percent in last two years, Akhtar Esmailian, an official with the NIORDC said, Iran 's ISNA news agency reported Sept. 22.
Mahan Air tops the list of airlines owe to the NIORDC with 3.48 billion rials of debts, followed by Aseman (2.53 trillion rials), Iran Air (2.2 trillion rials) and Iran Air Tour with 540 billion rials of debts, the official said.
If the airlines refuse to settle their debts, the NIORDC will cut fuel supply to them, Esmailian underlined.
Meanwhile the oil ministry officials have announced in numerous occasions that the ministry cannot take any measures to receive the debts nor can it suspend supplying fuel to airlines.
Iranian airlines and oil ministry have frequent disagreements over the fuel price. The airlines refuse to accept the jet fuel price announced by oil ministry, saying the airplane ticket prices are not commensurate with the fuel price.
After launching the Subsidy Reform Plan, the administration sharply increased jet fuel price for domestic passenger airlines.
The subsidy reform plan, launched in December 2010, allows the Iranian government to gradually slash subsidies on fuel, electricity, and certain goods over the course of five years.
Earlier the head of the association of Iranian airlines, Abdolreza Mousavi said that Iranian airlines are unable to pay off their fuel debts to the Oil Ministry due to their bad financial position.
Edited by CN
Follow the author on Twitter: @UmidNiayesh
