Iran is importing 250,000 tonnes of gas oil from Singapore in February, up from 200,000 tonnes bought for January as the icy winter boosted demand for heating and power generation, industry sources said on Tuesday.

The Opec member has been buying gas oil from Singapore since early this year, after India's Reliance halted supplies last year when French banks BNP Paribas and Calyon stopped offering credit on the deals, company and industry sources had said.

"Consumption goes up a lot especially during winter. It is very cold this year," an Iranian source said. Iran is expected to continue buying gas oil from Singapore even after winter, with volumes ranging from 40,000 to 80,000 tonnes a month, sources said.-Reuters