Malls in Tehran will close two hours earlier today to conserve energy as Iran faces increased shortages of electricity that are worsened by a cold wave.

“If shopping malls do not respect this decision, they will be closed and gas and electricity supplies will be cut off,” warned Hamidreza Rastegar, an official at the Chamber of Commerce.

The measure decided yesterday Monday stipulates that shopping malls will close every night at 8 p.m. instead of 10 p.m., ISNA news agency reported.

The duration of these restrictions, which apply only to Tehran, has not been specified.

Iran has the world’s second-largest natural gas deposits and significant reserves of oil. However, the country’s power grid is suffering due to a lack of investment in modernizing its infrastructure, mainly because of Western sanctions.

In recent weeks, Iranian authorities have been forced to impose restrictions on electricity use, as there is not enough gas and fuel to supply power plants.

A cold wave that has hit the country of 85 million people in recent days has made energy supplies, especially gas, even more difficult.

For the third consecutive day today, schools and public buildings remained closed in Tehran and more than half of Iran’s 31 provinces in a bid to save energy, according to Irna.

Iranian President Massoud Pezheskian has denounced what he called the country’s “very high” energy consumption.

“We consume two or three times more electricity than European countries,” he said and asked his fellow citizens to turn down the thermostat in their homes and wear warmer clothes.