Four-minute read
Iran is currently grappling with a severe electricity crisis, plunging citizens into darkness and crippling businesses across the nation. While the regime attempts to manage the fallout, statements from its own officials reveal a stark admission: this crisis is not a sudden misfortune but the predictable outcome of years, even decades, of systematic underinvestment and mismanagement. As the blackouts intensify even before the peak summer demand, the regime’s narrative is shifting from denial to a desperate plea for public patience, betraying a deep-seated fear of the Iranian people’s reaction to their enduring hardship.
Decades of Underinvestment Acknowledged
The scale of the crisis and its origins have been openly discussed by figures within the Iranian establishment. On May 13, 2025, Fatemeh Mohajerani, the spokesperson for the government of regime president Masoud Pezeshkian, publicly acknowledged the dire situation. “We are facing an imbalance of about 20,000 megawatts, and this imbalance is not the result of a day or two,” she stated. “This imbalance is the result of years of underinvestment on the one hand, and the expansion of distribution networks on the other, and the increased consumption resulting from these expansions.”
This admission underscores a long history of prioritizing other expenditures over essential infrastructure. The spokesperson further detailed the regime’s strategy, or lack thereof, in managing the shortfall: “Therefore, instead of imposing power cuts solely on industries, some of the power cuts have been directed towards household consumption.”
🔴 Tehran – Nazi Abad – May 13, night
In a bold act of defiance, MEK Resistance Units chanted:
"Cut IRGC’s electricity, the power crisis will be solved!"
"IRGC, Basij, and the Supreme Leader are the nation’s electricity thieves!"#FreeIran2025 #Iran pic.twitter.com/7ABOzZ2jTu— SIMAY AZADI TV (@en_simayazadi) May 15, 2025
While couching this as sharing the burden, the reality is a direct transfer of the regime’s failure onto the shoulders of ordinary citizens. She added, “At the same time, I emphasize that we know this situation is problematic for the people, but we must get through these difficult conditions together… we hope that with everyone’s cooperation… we can overcome these difficult conditions.”
Concern and Incompetence on Display
The regime’s parliament (Majlis) has also become a stage for expressing alarm over the electricity crisis and its societal repercussions. During a session on Tuesday, May 13, 2025, MP Mohammad Reza Sabbaghian Bafghi voiced the severity of the situation: “The power outage… is truly a serious issue… this electricity situation is troubling the people and various segments of society, and people are genuinely facing many problems.” He pointed out the absurdity of the crisis deepening even before the summer heat: “My warning pertains to the entire country; this power outage is a ‘crisis upon a crisis,’ and we don’t know where the problem lies? What does the government want to do? Summer hasn’t even started yet, we’re still in spring, and we have these widespread power outages.”
NCRI Statement: 15 Acts by #Iranian Rebellious Youth Across 12 Cities Amid Regime Power Cutshttps://t.co/j775ZjXYq0
— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) May 13, 2025
Echoing these concerns, MP Jabar Kouchakinejad highlighted the public’s anxiety and the lack of accountability: “Mr. Speaker, today being oversight day, we expected a discussion regarding the Ministry of Energy, especially concerning the blackouts that sometimes last 4 or 5 hours in different parts of the country, including villages and cities, and people are extremely nervous.” He directly questioned the Energy Minister’s capabilities, stating, “We expected the Minister of Energy to come here today and explain the reason for all these blackouts and the problems they are creating for the people. If he doesn’t have the ability? Well, the president should clarify his [the minister’s] status.”
The widespread disruption caused by these policies is further evidenced by drastic measures such as altering school schedules. As reported on May 13, 2025, school hours have been changed to run from 6:00 AM to 1:00 PM, with double-shift schools operating from 6:00 AM to 9:30 AM and 10:00 AM to 1:30 PM, a clear indication of a system struggling to cope.
Daily Life Ground to a Halt
Beyond official admissions, the daily reality for Iranians is one of profound disruption and economic loss. Reports from May 12, 2025, depict a nation struggling. Shopkeepers, like a tool seller in Isfahan, lament the loss of business and the added burden of noisy, insufficient generators. A dairy owner in Baharestan described how hours-long blackouts during peak business times destroy perishable goods like milk, yogurt, and ice cream, leaving him to wonder, “Who should we voice our pain to?” Businesses are forced to send workers home, impacting wages and stability, while households suffer damage to essential appliances like freezers and security systems burning out due to erratic power supply. One citizen bitterly contrasted the public’s suffering with the regime’s priorities: “At year-end, the tax office sends a notice for so much tax, while the funding for Houthis and Hezbollah, I don’t know, these dogs and jackals, is lagging.”
Key Economic and Social Crises in 2024
– Gas Shortages: Severe disruptions caused blackouts, halted industries, and forced closures across provinces.
– Power Outages: Blackouts due to mismanagement and #IRGC’s illicit Bitcoin mining
– Currency Depreciation: Rial hit a record low… pic.twitter.com/sB0iWzFn1Y— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) January 1, 2025
Power for the Powerful, Blackouts for the People: The IRGC’s Crypto Bonanza
While ordinary Iranians endure these hardships, a significant portion of the nation’s electricity is reportedly being diverted to power-hungry cryptocurrency mining operations, many of which are linked to powerful state-affiliated entities, particularly the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and organizations under the Supreme Leader’s control, such as Astan Quds Razavi. These entities operate vast crypto mining farms, often benefiting from subsidized or even free electricity, insulating them from the very crisis they exacerbate.
It is estimated that out of approximately 180,000 crypto mining devices active in Iran, a substantial number—potentially over 80,000—are under the control of these governmental or quasi-governmental bodies. These operations are not merely for speculative gain; reports suggest the generated cryptocurrency is used to finance the regime’s regional activities, including support for proxy groups, and to circumvent international sanctions.
This creates a stark contrast: while citizens are told to tighten their belts and endure blackouts, entities like the IRGC are consuming enormous amounts of power for their own strategic and financial benefit.
#Iran Faces Escalating Crisis Amid Power Outages and Economic Woeshttps://t.co/E1S7n7ZB9f
— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) August 25, 2024
A Regime Bracing for Backlash
The Iranian regime’s handling of the escalating electricity crisis is a damning indictment of its priorities and competence. The open admission of “years of underinvestment” by its own officials is not a step towards accountability, but rather an attempt to normalize a disaster of its own making. The anxious discussions within the Majlis, questioning ministerial competence and highlighting the public’s extreme nervousness, alongside desperate appeals for public “cooperation,” paint a clear picture: the regime is acutely aware that its failures are pushing the Iranian people to a breaking point. The primary concern appears to be less about resolving the crisis and more about managing the inevitable public anger stemming from decades of neglect that have now plunged the nation into darkness. The fear of a popular backlash, fueled by intolerable living conditions, is palpable.