The state-run Iran Power Generation, Distribution and Transmission Company (Tavanir) said Tuesday the widespread power outages in the capital is due to cuts in feedstock (natural gas) deliveries to power stations.
Mostafa Rajabi Mashhadi, a company spokesman, said demand had surpassed 7,000 megawatts in Tehran Province and because gas accessibility is limited, load shedding and outages are inevitable, IRNA reported.
“So long as Tehran power plants are not allowed to use alternative fuel (mazut), sporadic outages will continue.”
Many districts in the sprawling city including Sohanak, Narmak, Shahr-e-Rey, Navab, Afsariyeh, Pirouzi, Fatemi, Shahrak-e-Rah Ahan and Niavaran experienced at least two hours of blackout on Tuesday.
Since the onset of winter and increase in home gas consumption, gas supply to power plants has been disrupted as priority shifts to households forcing power plants to use liquid fuel, the Tavanir official said, and added that thermal plants run on natural gas.
Tavanir had earlier warned that if consumption does not decline power cuts would start. “For the first time in decades electricity consumption in winter has exceeded 41 GW.”
Compared to last year, consumption has shot up beyond expectation, he said. In January 2020, demand rarely reached 34,000 megawatts. It was 41,500 MW on Tuesday up 15% compared to the same day last year.
Some plants are disconnected from the national grid for the routine summer overhaul.
There are five thermal power plants in Tehran Province, two are under repairs and Tehran Regional Electricity Company has to meet a part of the rising demand from Shahid Salimi Power Plant (Neka) in the northern Mazandaran Province.
At the present consumption levels “even with mazut it will be difficult to cope,” the utility warned last week. It says power plants in big cities like Tehran have not yet started to use mazut but will if necessary.
Burning Mazut
In related news, IRNA quoted Isa Kalantari, head of the Department of Environment, as saying that burning mazut in Tehran power plants is a recipe for disaster.
“Accepting sporadic power cuts is much better than using mazut in power stations.”
Liquid fuels such as diesel or mazut produce huge volumes of carbon dioxide. Mazut also increases the amount of sulfur dioxide (SO2) in the atmosphere.
SO2 emissions contribute to acid rain and the formation of harmful particulates – also known as atmospheric aerosol particles. In addition, SO2 can exacerbate respiratory ailments including asthma, nasal congestion, and pulmonary inflammation.
According to Mohammadreza Joulaee, head of the National Iranian Gas Company Dispatching Department, total natural gas consumption in the household sector has risen by 30 million cubic meters per day over the past three months compared to a year ago.
“Close to 680 mcm of gas is used daily in homes across the country, which is at least 30 mcm/d more than in 2019 and 2020.” Of the total daily consumption close to 125 mcm is used in Tehran Province alone.
The official said household consumption is expected to surpass 700 mcm/d in the coming days, in which case delivery to power plants, now around 150 mcm/d, will have to be cut by 100 mcm/d.
Total gas production is around 880 mcm/d of which 40 mcm is exported daily to Iraq and Turkey.
