Iranian Deputy Oil Minister Jalil Salari said that nearly 10 million liters of diesel are smuggled out of the Islamic Republic every day because of its competitive price.

Salari, who is also the managing director of the National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Company, made the remarks in an interview with the official IRNA news agency, published on Saturday.

He stated that the price of a liter of diesel in Iran is about $0.8 less than its price in the surrounding countries, adding that the differences in diesel prices between Iran and its neighbors made smuggling an attractive activity.

Salari stated that the daily consumption of diesel in the country's transport sector is now 84 million liters, while it is estimated that the figure should not exceed 75 million liters per day.

Salari explained that to stop diesel smuggling, Iran encouraged the use of personal fuel cards and developed smart systems to impose greater control over cash transactions and identify suspicious transactions.

Salari said that Iran, which has one of the largest oil and gas reserves in the world, refines more than 2.2 million barrels of crude oil and condensate in its 10 refineries every day, adding that the country's daily production of diesel and gasoline reached 110 and 115 million liters, respectively.

The Iranian government subsidizes the use of fuel, making fuel smuggling a lucrative business. Over the past few months, the Iranian Navy has stopped a large number of ships for transporting smuggled fuel.