A small-scale power plant with distributed generation system in Marivan County, Kurdestan Province, will come online before the onset of the summer season, managing director of West Regional Electric Company said.
“With 25-megawatt capacity, the power station is expected to come on stream by June,” Ali Asadi was quoted as saying by Bargh News website.
“Construction of small-scale power plants helps reduce power loss and improve voltage profile in the grid. It also reduces the cost of transmission network expansion,” Asadi said.
Distributed generation refers to electricity produced in small quantities near the point of use, as alternative or supplement to traditional centralized grid-connected power. It reduces the cost and complexity associated with transmission and distribution, while offsetting peak electricity demand and stabilizing the local grid.
Conventional electric power generation takes place at central generating stations designed to produce electricity in the most efficient way.
Despite its universal success, this method of generation has a number of drawbacks. The traditional system requires extensive transmission and distribution apparatus. Only 40% of the calorific value of fossil fuel is converted into electrical energy and the remaining 60% is dispersed as heat.
Convenience Factor
Among the other advantages of distributed generation systems is that electricity generation adjacent to loads allows convenient use of heat energy (combined heat and power), Asadi added.
CHP is a highly efficient process that captures and utilizes the heat that is a by-product of the electricity generation process. CHP systems are highly efficient, making use of the heat which would otherwise be wasted when generating electrical or mechanical power.
Marivan small-scale power plant is the largest of its kind in the western regions.
Located 125 km northwest of Sanandaj, the provincial capital, Marivan is near the Iraq border and has a population of 200,000.
The Energy Ministry guarantees the purchase of electricity generated by small plants for at least five years.
The government is trying to work in partnership with the private sector by offering incentives to raise power generation.
Iran needs to expand power generating capacity by 5,000 MW annually to meet rising demand at home and expand its footprint in the regional energy market, officials have been quoted as saying.
Installed power capacity has now reached 83,000 MW.
