East Azarbaijan Lacks Power Infrastructure

Despite installed power generation capacity surpassing  80 gigawatts and exports to some neighboring states, several industrial townships in East Azarbaijan Province are deprived of electricity due to lack of infrastructure, the provincial deputy governor general for civil affairs said.
“Industrial towns here need 1,500 megawatts, but only 500 MW is provided by the power plants,” Javad Rahmati was quoted as saying by IRNA.
Power infrastructure in the region is lagging behind. Access to electricity is essential for economic growth. Industrial units cannot develop as planned and some are on the verge of shutting down, he said.
The province accounts for 8% of the country’s 80 million population but electricity output is less than 3.5%. He criticized officials for being indifferent toward improving power infrastructure in the region.
Rahmati noted that private firms are able and willing to construct small power plants based on build-operate-transfer (BOT) contracts.