To help meet growing power demand in summer, Iran Power Generation, Distribution and Transmission Company (Tavanir) is planning to import 600 megawatts of electricity per day from neighboring states, including Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan and Armenia, between June and September.
Mostafa Rajabi-Mashhadi, the head of Iran Grid Management Company, an Energy Ministry subsidiary, said daily import currently is less than 200 MW that is expected to triple in the near future, IRNA reported.
Electricity demand growth rate in Iran is 5.5% annually, but infrastructural development projects lag behind and supply cannot meet the rising demand, he added.
To cope with growing domestic demand, which is projected to soar to record-high levels in July (70,000 MW), Tavanir plans to reduce power export from around 3,000 MW to 1,000 MW during peak hours (1-5 p.m.).
"If necessary, we will totally halt exports in the scorching days of summer," he said, adding that meeting domestic requirements is a priority.
Giving a breakdown on power consumption, the deputy energy minister noted that industries, households, agro sector and commercial units comprise 38%, 32%, 18% and 7% of the total electricity use in Iran respectively.
Public places like parks, walkways and bus stations account for the rest.
“Consumption could reduce by at least 5,000 megawatts [during peak hours] provided industries and farmers uphold their commitment with Tavanir.”
The official stressed that industries and the agro sector account for 55% or 32,000 MW (per day) of the total power consumption that is now above 45,000 MW and rising, adding that those who comply with the policy will be eligible for a discount in billing.
In 2020 and 2021, as per Tavanir’s contracts with 300,000 farmers and industrialists, those who turned off their water pumps and electricity-intensive equipment between 12 p.m. and 6 p.m. received discounts.
The policy helped cut consumption in the agro sector by at least 2,000 MW.
Inexpensive Option
According to Arash Kordi, the head of Tavanir, harmonizing Iran and Russia’s electricity grids is the most viable and inexpensive option to help ease frequent power cuts during the hot summer days when power load maximizes in Iran.
“Iran needs to synchronize its power grid with that of Russia because otherwise it has to invest billions of dollars to construct new power stations to bridge the widening gap between supply and demand,” he added.
According to the official, electricity demand peaks in Iran between June and September, and this is when Russia’s demand declines and the surplus can be imported to Iran.
He reiterated that the national grid cannot carry a load higher than 64 GW and that is why rolling blackouts (load shedding) is on Tavanir’s agenda to compensate the shortfall.
According to Kordi, with the rise in temperature in the coming weeks, more power will be used but currently there is no problem regarding electricity generation.
