The plan to replace the aging Rey Power Plant in Tehran is underway and the first unit of the new high-efficiency F-Class power station will be connected to the network by the summer of 2024, deputy for projects development at the Thermal Power Plants Holding Company said.
“The existing Rey Power Plant was built in the 1970s with 40 gas units and a production capacity of over 1,000 megawatts. However, at present, the facility is operating with 21 gas units and a capacity of 500 MW and very low efficiency,” Hamidreza Azimi was also quoted as saying by the Energy Ministry’s news agency Paven.
According to the development plan, a high-efficiency combined-cycle plant with F-Class gas turbines and a total generation capacity of 1 GW will replace the old units of the plant, he added.
The 44-year-old thermal power station in the south of the province has an efficiency rate of 22%. The estimated useful life of an electricity plant normally is 20 years.
Azimi noted that the construction of a 230-kilovolt gas-insulated substation was launched at the plant as a first step to boost efficiency.
Iran’s Thermal Power Plants Holding Company has announced that it plans to phase out old power plants with low efficiency. Plans call for building a new power plant next to the old unit and gradually decommission the latter.
Permits have been issued for the construction of a combined-cycle power station with 60% efficiency near the aging Rey Power Station. However, as its completion requires a minimum three years, the old plant will function with improved efficiency.
Tehran has more than five million power subscribers, of which 75% are households. At least 100,000 new customers join the network annually, it has piled pressure on utilities, such as water, electricity and gas.
Effective steps have been taken to convert conventional plants into combined-cycle units to improve efficiency and reduce pollution and costs.
The Energy Ministry is gradually phasing out inefficient power plants, renovating and expanding electricity infrastructure and acquiring modern technology. However, financial constraints have slowed the process.
A combined-cycle power plant uses both gas and steam turbines to produce up to 50% more electricity from the same fuel than a traditional simple cycle plant. The waste heat from the gas turbine is sent to a nearby steam turbine to generate electricity.
Under the Energy Ministry rules, new power plant units must have an efficiency of at least 58%.
More than 80% of electricity output come from thermal plants that use fossil fuels. If the rehabilitation of aging plants is delayed, maintenance costs will become prohibitive for the highly subsidized and apparently loss-making energy sector.
