The energy ministers of Iran, Russia and Azerbaijan stressed the need to develop regional cooperation in the energy sector.
In a meeting in Doha, Qatar, on Tuesday on the sidelines of the Sixth Gas Exporting Countries Forum Summit, Ali Akbar Mehrabian, Nikolai Shulginov and Parviz Shahbazov, the respective energy ministers of Iran, Russia and Azerbaijan exchanged views on developing regional cooperation in the field of electricity.
They emphasized that their trilateral collaboration will have a significant impact on the energy security and energy economy of the region, IRNA reported.
One of the main topics of their meeting was synchronization of the electricity networks of the three countries and they unanimously stressed the need to complete the study phases as soon as possible and begin the executive operation of the project.
Referring to Iran as one of the top countries in the region regarding electricity generation as well as manufacture of transmission and distribution equipment, Mehrabian said, “Iran considers the synchronization project important for the expansion of electricity exchange not only with neighboring nations but also with other countries of the region.”
Shulginov emphasized the importance of the issue and called for further studies on the project so that the economic, technical and environmental aspects of the project are well understood.
“The studies should be completed urgently and carefully, and lead to the synchronization of the electricity networks of the three countries,” he added.
While emphasizing full support for the project, Shahbazov announced Azerbaijan's readiness to invest in related facilities for the implementation of the project.
“Just as the European countries’ power grids are interconnected and able to help each other in emergency situations, the vision of this project is not only to increase the reliability of the electricity networks of the three countries, but also in the long run, it can help promote the energy security of the region,” he said.
The three ministers agreed to attend the next week's meeting fully prepared to review the results of the project's studies.
Feasibility Studies Underway
In 2018, Azerbaijan, Russia and Iran created a working group to conduct feasibility studies to synchronize their power systems.
The working group included 18 people (six from each side) with the mandate of undertaking a feasibility study on integrating the power systems of the three Caspian states to create the North-South power corridor.
According to latest reports, the studies have yielded good results.
Harmonizing Iran and Russia’s electricity grids is the most viable and inexpensive option to help ease frequent power cuts during the hot summer days when power load maximizes in Iran.
Iran needs to synchronize its power grid with that of Russia because otherwise it has to invest billions of dollars to build new power stations to bridge the widening gap between supply and demand.
Electricity demand peaks in Iran between June and July, and this is the period when Russia’s demand declines and the surplus can be imported to Iran.
Cooperation With Algeria
Also on the sidelines of the Sixth GECF Summit, Mehrabian met with his Algerian counterpart and discussed bilateral relations.
Emphasizing Iran's readiness to cooperate with Algeria in all fields, especially in the power sector, Mehrabian expressed hope that a joint meeting between the officials of the two countries will be held soon to expedite bilateral collaborations, Mehr News Agency reported.
Algerian Energy Minister Mohamed Arkab referred to Algeria's numerous commonalities with Iran in the fields of politics, economy and industry, and called for the further development of Iran-Algeria relations.
“Algeria seeks to expand cooperation with Iran, especially in the field of energy,” he added.
Highlighting the capabilities of Iranian companies in the fields of industry and production, Arkab called for cooperating with the companies, stressing that Iranian companies can operate independently or form joint ventures with Algerian counterparts.
Iran’s power industry is present in 40 international markets as exporter of goods and services under engineering, procurement and construction contracts.
Iranian companies are active in Iraq and Syria as their two biggest markets. They have 58 projects in other countries, namely Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Sri Lanka, Uganda, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Oman and India.
