Energy consumption and economic activities in Iran

The causal relationship between overall GDP, industrial and agricultural value added and consumption of different kinds of energy are investigated using vector error correction model for the case of Iran within 1967-2003. A long-run unidirectional relationship from GDP to total energy and bidirectional relationship between GDP and gas as well as GDP and petroleum products consumption for the whole economy was discovered. Causality is running from value added to total energy, electricity, gas and petroleum products consumption and from gas consumption to value added in industrial sector. The long-run bidirectional relations hold between value added and total energy, electricity and petroleum products consumption in the agricultural sector. The short-run causality runs from GDP to total energy and petroleum products consumption, and also industrial value added to total energy and petroleum products consumption in this sector. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.