Head of the Housing and Urban Development Research Center announced that Iran and Germany will establish a joint research center on housing and urban development.
Speaking on the sidelines of a meeting of the Iran-Germany Joint Working Group in Tehran, Mohammad Shokrchi said in the wake of the recent political opening and prospects of sanctions relief, the road ministry is preparing the ground for enhanced cooperation with the Germans, by focusing on energy-efficient construction, website of the Ministry of Roads and Urban Development reported on Monday.
Noting that there are about 17 million residential units in the country, 80% of which need to improve home energy consumption, he said, "The joint research center will work to help improve the state of energy consumption in buildings."
Shokrchi noted that energy waste is a critical issue in Iran which needs to be dealt with systemically, warning that Iran would turn into a major energy importer within a few years if the problem is not addressed without further delay.
Iranians use two and a half times more energy per capita than developed countries for heating and cooling purposes, he complained.
Eco-Cities
Mohsen Nariman, head of the ministry's New Towns Development Company, welcomed German investment in the construction sector and hoped that further cooperation would pave the way for promoting sustainable development of environment-friendly cities.
He referred to a joint study by the Housing and Urban Development Research Center and Technical University of Berlin of the New Hashtgerd Town in Alborz Province and said, "Careful studies and international experience in the development of such projects is highly important for us."
"The New Towns Development Company-- affiliated to the Ministry of Roads -- is working on 17 plans to build (low-cost) houses for more than 4 million people," Nariman added.
Rapid urbanization over three decades has led to a huge increase in the population in suburbs and compelled the ministry to take effective measures against disorganized expansion of metropolitan areas, he said.
He did not say what effective measures the government had taken to check the increase in haphazard urbanization across the country that has created huge problems for and imposed added pressure on basic infrastructure, namely water, electricity, public transport, housing, education, gas and other utilities.
Nariman called for building new towns based on the 'eco-city' notion and draw on the capacity, ability and experience of the private sector to enhance the quality of now housing units.
