Iran has announced a doubling of petrol prices for higher-volume consumers while preparing to establish a new restricted maritime zone across parts of the strategically important Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf, according to a report published by Times Now on Monday, 7 September.
The measures come as Tehran faces growing economic and maritime pressure from the United States. The latest decisions signal that the Iranian authorities are seeking to manage domestic fuel consumption while also tightening controls over strategically sensitive waters amid escalating tensions.
Mohsen Rezaei, one of Iran’s senior security officials, said on state television that the new restricted zone would be established within the next few days. The proposed area would reportedly extend from the line of the US naval blockade into specified parts of the Persian Gulf.
According to Rezaei, any vessel entering the designated area would be placed on Iran’s own sanctions list. The announcement adds another layer of tension around the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow but strategically vital waterway linking the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman. The route is crucial to international energy trade, making developments around the strait closely watched by oil markets and governments around the world.
Alongside the maritime measures, Iran is introducing a higher petrol price for consumers exceeding the lower monthly fuel allocations. From the morning of 8 September, the price under the third tier of the country’s petrol pricing system will rise from 5,000 toman to 10,000 toman per litre.
The government has stressed that the first and second tiers of the monthly petrol quota will remain unchanged. Government spokeswoman Fatemeh Mohajerani confirmed the decision, meaning the price increase will primarily affect consumption beyond the lower quota levels rather than applying uniformly to all petrol purchases.
The pricing decision comes at a difficult time for Iran’s economy. The Iranian rial has continued to lose value since the US-Israel conflict began on 28 February, with the open-market exchange rate reportedly reaching around 2.2 million rials for one US dollar.
A weaker currency can increase the cost of imported goods and place additional pressure on household finances and businesses. For a country already facing extensive economic restrictions, maintaining fuel supplies while controlling consumption presents a significant policy challenge.
The United States is also intensifying economic pressure on Tehran. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has recently outlined plans for comprehensive economic pressure against Iran, including measures aimed at reducing the country’s oil exports to zero. Washington is pursuing tighter economic sanctions alongside maritime measures as part of its broader strategy to restrict Iran’s access to international markets and revenue from oil sales.
Oil exports remain a critical source of foreign-currency earnings for Iran. Any sustained disruption to those exports could therefore place further pressure on government revenues and the country’s access to foreign currency.
The combination of higher petrol prices for additional consumption, continued pressure on the rial and new restrictions around the Strait of Hormuz reflects the increasingly difficult economic and security environment facing Tehran. At the same time, any further escalation around the strategically important waterway could have consequences well beyond Iran, given its significance to global energy shipments.
