The Iran-Azerbaijan Republic Technical Commission, which convened in East Azarbaijan Province at the weekend, stressed on continuing cooperation for completing the construction of Khoda-Afarin and Qiz-Qalasi hydroelectric power plants.
The two sides also discussed further collaboration in the fields of energy and water resources with the help of their respective governments, the Energy Ministry’s news portal Paven reported.
Iran and Azerbaijan had finalized an agreement in January 2021 to build a 280-megawatt hydroelectric power plant at Khoda-Afarin Dam and accelerate the construction of the 40-MW hydropower station on Qiz-Qalasi Dam on the Aras River that straddles the joint border.
The two sides also agreed to restore the ancient bridges downstream of the Khoda-Afarin Dam, which is a shared cultural heritage.
Khoda-Afarin is an earth-fill embankment dam, with a capacity of 1.6 billion cubic meters of water. It is located 8 km west of Khomarlou, (capital of Khoda-Afarin County) in Iran's East Azarbaijan Province and 14 km southwest of Soltanli in Jabrayil district of the neighboring republic.
One of the largest dams in the northwest of Iran, it supplies 1 billion cubic meters of water to Iran annually. Other functions of the dam are flood control and development of aquaculture and fisheries.
Upon the launch of its hydropower plant, it will also produce 550 megawatt hours of electricity per year.
With a capacity of 62 mcm, Qiz-Qalasi Dam has been built for supplying water to irrigation and drainage networks in Khoda-Afarin County. When its hydroelectric power station comes online, it will generate 270 MWh of electricity every year.
Iran is self-sufficient in power plant construction and has signed energy contracts with neighboring states. The country's dam building capacity has improved significantly in the past three decades.
More than 200 contractors, 70 consulting firms and 30 associated companies, along with dozens of hydroelectric equipment manufacturing companies, are active in the key sector.
Iran ranks third in dam construction internationally, after China and Japan, according to the American Enterprise Institute.
Thirty Iranian firms are implementing 88 water and electricity projects worth $4.3 billion in South America, namely Cuba, Bolivia and Venezuela.
Aras River
Iran and Azerbaijan use Aras River resources based on mutual interest. East Azarbaijan Province's share of water from the river is 282 mcm a year and when the first phase of a plan to transfer water from the river in the northwest to Tabriz is inaugurated, Iran’s share will rise by 102 mcm/y.
The project to supply water from Aras to East Azarbaijan at a cost of over $200 million is almost 25% complete. It entails building two dams, namely Golfaraj and Gardian on Aras in Jolfa County of the province, laying 135 kilometers of pipelines and installing six pumping stations.
One of the longest rivers in the Caucasus, Aras River rises in eastern Turkey and flows along the borders between Turkey and Armenia, between Turkey and the Nakhchivan exclave of Azerbaijan, between Iran and both Azerbaijan and Armenia, and, finally, through Azerbaijan where it is a tributary of the Kura River. The river's total length is 1,072 kilometers and its watershed covers an area of 102,000 square kilometers.
Power Exchange, Grid Synchronization
Tehran and Baku have taken steps to boost the exchange of electricity and the joint construction of a power station. Iran exports electricity to Azerbaijan in winter and imports in summer under a swap deal. Both have agreed to annually exchange at least 700 megawatts.
Iran is also synchronizing its power grid with Azerbaijan. Iran has said it is planning to connect its power grid to Russia through the Republic of Azerbaijan.
Electricity experts from Iran, Russia and Azerbaijan have met in the past and discussed technicalities of creating an energy corridor to export Russian electricity to Azerbaijan and Iran.
The network will connect their power grids with the aim of reducing outages during the peak consumption seasons.
