Introduction

In recent decades, profound transformations in the structure of the global economy and shifts in development paradigms have placed cities whose initial growth and identity were shaped by the extraction and exploitation of natural resources under serious pressure to redefine their position, function, and future. These cities, often referred to as resource-based cities or company towns, played a significant role in national economies during periods of resource prosperity, especially oil. However, over time, due to structural fluctuations in the global economy, declining extraction profitability, technological change, policy shifts, and environmental requirements, they have faced economic, social, and physical decline. Masjed Suleyman - as the first oil city in Iran - is a prominent example of this situation. At the beginning of the 14th century SH, this city ranked among the major centers of industrial modernization in Iran, but due to its historical dependence on the oil economy and the lack of diversification in its development foundations, it has experienced a set of intertwined crises in recent decades, including economic stagnation, infrastructural deterioration, reduced investment, declining urban environmental quality, weakened social capital, and historical identity erosion. Therefore, the redevelopment of Masjed Suleyman is not merely a physical or economic necessity, but a multidimensional issue that must be examined in connection with urban governance, institutional structures, local capacities, historical memory, ecological considerations, and emerging development opportunities. Accordingly, the chief objective is to identify the grounds and capacities for redevelopment in resource-based cities, with a focus on Masjed Suleyman, and to provide a conceptual framework for guiding this city’s transition from an oil-based structure to a sustainable, resilient, and post-oil model. This topic gains further importance because the experience of Masjed Suleyman can offer, beyond a single case study, a localized model for other resource-based cities in Iran.



Methodology

This study was designed and conducted using a mixed-methods approach within a three-level conceptual model consisting of context, capacity, and transformation. This approach was selected because of the complex nature of the subject, which requires both an interpretive understanding of redevelopment contexts and a structural evaluation and prioritization of operational capacities. In the first stage, qualitative content analysis was employed to identify the contexts affecting the redevelopment of Masjed Suleyman. Data for this stage were collected through 22 semi-structured interviews with experts, specialists, and knowledgeable actors in urban development, resource economics, regional management, and the transformation of Masjed Suleyman. Policy and theoretical sources were reviewed and analyzed via MaxQDA, identifying six redevelopment contexts: institutional, historical, ecological, social, economic, and technological. In the second stage, fuzzy DEMATEL was used to analyze causal relationships and the degree of influence and dependence among these contexts. Based on expert input (n=12), a mutual-relationship matrix was developed; D and R indices revealed variable hierarchy and dynamics, identifying drivers and dependent factors. Stage three then evaluated and prioritized redevelopment capacities across six areas (sustainable economy, resilience, transformative technologies, spatial justice, urban ecology, smart transition). Indicators matched to Masjed Suleyman’s context assessed preparedness, impact, priority, and activation potential to define evidence-based pathways.



Results and Discussion

The findings indicated, in the redevelopment structure of resource-based cities, contrary to conventional approaches that focus primarily on physical interventions or direct economic reforms, institutional structures, governance mechanisms, and legal frameworks play a decisive role. DEMATEL analysis showed institutional (4.55) and legal (3.31) factors as primary causes, while the economy (−5.41) was most dependent. This confirms economic issues stem from higher policy and institutional weaknesses, with influence flowing from governance to economic/social outcomes. In this network, the environmental and ecological context plays an intermediary and connective role, maintaining a dynamic relationship among institutional requirements, livelihood, and social consequences by occupying a position close to equilibrium. These results illustrate that the redevelopment of Masjed Suleyman can only succeed if it begins with structural reforms and then leads to economic, social, and spatial transformation. In the second part of the findings, the evaluation of redevelopment capacities exhibits that Masjed Suleyman has a network of 37 capacities across six main areas, each with a degree of actual or potential capability for developmental reinvention. Three equal-weight indicators (diversification, innovation, sustainability) drove capacity priorities. Top-scoring capacities—renewable energy accelerator (7.94), innovation center (7.46), and green hydrogen pilot (7.33)—anchor Masjed Soleyman's low-carbon transition. The significance of this finding lies in the fact that the city’s future does not rest on a return to traditional extraction-based models, but rather on redefining its advantages through clean energy, technical knowledge, and institutional innovation. In addition, capacities such as ethnic experience-based tourism, sustainable value-chain development, and adaptive urban redevelopment occupied mid-range rankings. Although they may not yield rapid financial returns, they play an important role in strengthening urban sustainability due to their social, cultural, and environmental effects. Lower-ranked projects like a living city-museum and energy park-museum are vital for identity, memory, and historical reconnection. The study argues Masjed Suleyman needs a balanced mix of innovative, social, cultural, and ecological capacities - no single approach can address its complexity.



Conclusion

This study exhibited that Masjed Suleyman’s transition from an oil-based economy to a sustainable development model is a gradual but complicated and multi-level process that will only be possible through synergy among institutional reforms, legal regulation, economic reinvention, social ties’ preservation, and the use of innovative capacities. Unlike global cases focused on industrial or cultural revitalization, Masjed Suleyman needs a hybrid, localized model that simultaneously tackles institutional, economic, ecological, and identity dimensions. Effective intervention must start at the macro level (institutions, laws, incentives) and then drive meso/micro changes: economic restructuring, better quality of life, social resilience, and local asset activation. Masjed Suleyman’s future lies in a low-carbon, knowledge-based economy, but true sustainability also requires cultural regeneration, place attachment, industrial memory preservation, and spatial justice. Despite challenges, Masjed Suleyman has strong redevelopment potential and, with institutional support, could become a model for transforming other resource-based Iranian cities.