To prevent industrial townships and households from the adverse impact of voltage fluctuations in Khuzestan Province, power projects worth $250 million have been launched, the head of Iran Power Generation, Distribution and Transmission Company said.
"The initiatives entail building 15 gas-insulated substations (GIS) in addition to three 400-kilovolt power substations, a 132/33-kilovolt mobile substation and extending 100 kilometers of high-voltage transmission cables in several counties, namely Izeh, Bagh-Malek and Dezpart," Arash Kordi was also quoted as saying by ISNA.
Peak power demand in Iran reached 69,500 megawatts in July, of which 12% were consumed in the southern Khuzestan Province, he added, noting that this area will face a serious deficit in the coming years unless infrastructures are developed.
Daily power consumption in Khuzestan hovers around 4 gigawatts in winter, but as the weather gets warmer in summer and the temperature exceeds 50 degrees Celsius, consumption triples between June and August.
Referring to plans completed in the region over the last 12 months, Kordi noted that a 230/33-kilovolt power substation and a 132/33-kilovolt mobile substation were synchronized with the national power grid in June.
“Costing $30 million, the new installations will stabilize power supply in and around Ahvaz from the adverse impact of voltage fluctuations in the hot summer when electricity consumption peaks in the region. The two substations are equipped with 100-megavolt-ampere and 30-megavolt-ampere transformers, which will improve the stability of power transmission in the local grid,” he said.
The project was carried out with the help of domestic engineers and funded by the provincial power company.
Transformers and substations at times break down in Ahvaz due to the temperature that rises to 50 degrees Celsius.
Power outages in Khuzestan have become a near permanent feature in recent years. The province is battered by irregular but weeks-long blackouts as some power and water infrastructure are hit by sand and dust storms originating largely from Iraq.
Load Shedding
The official said that to reduce load shedding and frequent outages in Khuzestan, three gas-insulated substations have recently been synchronized with the national grid.
"GIS systems cost twice as much as regular substations, but play a key role in reducing power cuts in sandstorm regions,” he said.
The three 132-kilovolt substations cost $35 million and were built in two years.
A GIS uses superior dielectric gas and sulfur hexaflouride, at moderate pressure for insulation.
Referring to the advantages of GIS, he said, “In a GIS, the active parts are protected from the deterioration from exposure to atmospheric air, moisture and contamination. That is why harsh weather conditions like sand storms have the least effect on such installations. Moreover, their maintenance cost is much lower than conventional high-voltage substations [AIS] that are built in open areas.”
Kordi noted that building a GIS requires four times as much investment as an AIS, adding that domestic experts, with the help of the private sector, have developed the pilot project of building GIS, yet the substations are still being tested by international energy companies to get the necessary licenses for mass production.
According to Mahmoud Dashtbozorg, Khuzestan Regional Electricity Company, the facilities were purchased from ABB, a Swedish-Swiss multinational corporation headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland, in 2017.
“The power grid in the region will be equipped with nine more GIS systems that are expected to cost $105 million,” he said.
Dust Storms
Repairing and rebuilding infrastructure, namely substations and power transmission equipment, battered by dust storms, is expensive. Unfortunately, dust storms are a permanent feature of the southern regions, knocking out electricity grids in several cities of Khuzestan.
Dashtbozorg noted that in 2015, the sandstorm was so strong that the entire power network was hit and oil output decreased by 700,000 barrels for some days.
The province accounts for 70% of the country's crude oil production.
According to Houshang Falahatian, a former deputy energy minister, the ministry allocated 1 trillion rials ($200 million) to restore power in Khuzestan in 2017.
Residents also suffer intermittent water supply cuts due to the power failures.
According to experts, most of the sources of dust storms, which have worsened in recent years, are in neighboring Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Syria.
The small-scale power plant in Dezful, with distributed generation system operated by the regional electricity company, also joined the national electricity grid in May.
“The 25-megawatt plant was built by the domestic engineering and energy giant, MAPNA Group,” he said.
Costing $40 million, the gas turbine helped stabilize power supply in Shoush and Dezful counties in summer.
