Encouraging policies to promote prudent power consumption helped the Energy Ministry to export more electricity in 2019, head of Iran Power Generation, Distribution and Transmission Company (Tavanir) said.
“Electricity consumption during peak demand season (June to August) declined by 1,000 megawatts compared to the year before, as a result of which the ministry’s export revenues increased by $143 million,” Mohammad Hassan Motavalizadeh was quoted as saying by IRNA.
Data from the Statistical Center of Iran show Tavanir exported 2.9 billion kilowatt hours of power to neighbors, namely Iraq, Pakistan and Afghanistan between June and September 2019.
The figure (2.9 billion kWh) indicates a rise of 190% compared to the corresponding period in 2018.
Annual power generation in Iran is 77,000 MW and average annual export is around 10 billion kilowatt hours, which can be increased further if domestic subscribers consume prudently.
Load did not cross 57 GW in 2019. Unlike households, industries and the agro sector registered a decline in consumption.
Regarding the main contributors to the declining consumption, he said based on a contract with farmers and industry owners, they were obliged to turn off their water pumps and machinery during peak hours and most have complied. In response the ministry has pledged to give them a discount on their electricity bills during off-peak periods.
According to the official, the contract not only cut power use but also helped increase exports.
"Demand Response (DR) Program" has helped reduce load on the national grid in previous years.
DR changes in electric usage by end-use customers from their normal consumption patterns in response to changes in the price of electricity over time. Demand response programs decrease electricity consumption or shift it from on-peak to off-peak periods depending on consumer preferences and lifestyle.
Replacing old and defective equipment, power lines, utility posts, cables and meters as well as penalizing illegal use (theft) of electricity were among other measures to reduce electricity loss.
Power generation cost, including production and transmission, is 2 cents per kilowatt-hour.
“The ministry charges 7 cents for each kilowatt-hour of exported power, whereas the same is sold for 0.7 cents per kWh to domestic subscribers as it is heavily subsidized.”
So long as electricity tariffs are not adjusted upwards, efforts to encourage households to use less power will be an exercise in futility, economic experts say.
