Kushk Solar Power Plant in Kushk Rural District of Khatam County, Yazd Province, has generated over 4,900 megawatt hours of electricity since its inauguration three months ago, the managing director of Yazd Regional Electricity Company said.
“An undertaking of the private sector [Ghadir Energy Investment Company], the 10-MW solar farm was completed in less than 10 months at an estimated cost of $6 million,” Abolfazl Asadi was also quoted as saying by the Energy Ministry’s news portal Paven.
“The power produced at the solar farm is supplied to 6,000 households,” he said, adding that the power station has helped reduce network losses and polluting emissions.
Spread over 20 hectares, it is designed to generate 20 million kilowatt hours of electricity per annum.
According to the official, if the same amount of power was to be produced by a thermal power plant, it would annually consume at least 5 million cubic meters of natural gas, 5 million liters of water and that would produce 3.5 million kilograms of pollutants, including CO2 and SO2.
The farm includes 27,000 photovoltaic panels made by China’s LONGi Solar, an international manufacturer of high-efficiency mono-crystalline solar cells and modules, and 85 inverters manufactured in SMA Solar Technology AG, a German solar energy equipment supplier.
“At present, there are 10 solar power stations in Yazd with a total capacity of 81.5 MW,” Asadi said.
Twenty more solar projects with a total capacity of 340 MW are in different stages of construction in the central province. The new units will be completed in 2022 at a cost of $16 million.
Yazd has the highest solar power output in the country. With 3,200 plus sunlight hours in a year, the ancient city is highly suitable for harnessing solar power as it is situated near oases where two deserts meet, namely Dasht-e Kavir and Dasht-e Lut, the latter known as one of the hottest places on earth.
The privately-owned Ghadir Energy Investment Company, established in 1991, has developed solar farms in Qom and Isfahan as well as Mehriz County in Yazd.
Solar radiation in Iran is estimated to be about 1,800 to 2,200 kilowatt-hours per cubic meter annually, which is higher than the global average.
Studies show investments in renewable energy are profitable. Therefore, the Energy Ministry plans to raise annual renewable energy output to 5,000 MW in four years with the participation of private companies.
