Renewable power stations with a total capacity of 900 megawatts will come on stream by 2025, Ghadir Energy Investment Company, a member of the Power Generation Companies Syndicate, said.
“The privately-owned company will construct 800 MW of solar farms and 100 MW of wind farms during the three-year period,” Farideddin Masoumi was also quoted as saying by ISNA.
“Ghadir Company has already built four 10 MW solar power plants in Isfahan, Yazd and Qom provinces. By the end of the current Iranian year [March 2023], more solar stations with a total capacity of 60 MW will become operational,” he added.
Elaborating on the projects, the official said 20 MW of solar farms will be built in Isfahan, 20 MW will be added to the solar generation capacity of Yazd and also 20 MW of photovoltaic power stations will come on stream in Fars Province.
The launch of these power plants will help save 33 million cubic meters of natural gas. If the same amount of power were to be produced by thermal power plants, they would need to burn the fossil fuel, he added.
Referring to the potentials in Iran for the development of renewable energy, Masoumi said the average solar radiation in Iran is estimated to be about 2,000 kilowatt hours per square meter during 300 sunny days a year, which is higher than the global average.
“The figure reached 5,000 kilowatt hours per square meter in Isfahan and Yazd so they are better locations for the construction of new solar power plants,” he added.
To help expand renewable energy in Iran, over $100 million have been earmarked in the budget bill for the current year.
The development of renewables will help address the problems of generating electricity by thermal power plants.
While thermal power stations need fossil fuel as feedstock and water for cooling purposes and also pollute the environment, renewables are eco-friendly and require neither fuel nor water, nor do they emit greenhouse gas.
1% of total Production
Currently, 900 MW of electricity are produced through renewable resources, which account for about 1% of the total power production capacity in the country (85,000 MW).
Investment by private firms in the renewable sector has surpassed $1.1 billion, mostly in solar power, and the government attempts to encourage private producers to play a more active role in the field.
Offering higher prices is an incentive for investors. Tariffs for different types of power stations increased last May and reached 4.4 cents and 4 cents per kWh for photovoltaic power plants and wind farms respectively.
Previously, the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Organization (Satba) signed agreements to buy green power from private electricity producers based on a model that guaranteed electricity purchase for 20 years, but the model changed last year.
Based on the new model, the main investment and its interest will return to investors within four years, which is equivalent to the purchase of electricity produced in about seven years and subsequently the owners of power plants will deliver electricity to the Iranian market for a period of 20 years.
According to Energy Ministry data, solar and wind account for 48% and 36% of the domestic renewable power production respectively.
Small-scale hydroelectric plants, waste-to-energy plants and biomass factories constitute 13%, 2% and 1% of the total renewable output, respectively.
There are more than 115 large solar farms in the country and around 3,500 small-scale solar installations in cities and villages. Over 2,500 rooftop photovoltaic power stations will be set up by next year, mainly in deprived and rural areas.
According to a report by the International Renewable Energy Agency, renewable energy is the least expensive option for improving access to electricity, reducing air pollution and cutting CO2 emissions. It also contributes to sustainable socioeconomic growth, boosting global gross domestic product growth by 1%, employing close to 29 million people and generating a 15% increase in welfare, mainly through health benefits from reduced air pollution.
Renewables can also help transform unsustainable production and consumption patterns, protect biodiversity, reverse deforestation and combat land degradation.
