Power output capacity in Iran, which stands at 90,000 MW now, is planned to increase by 7,787 megawatts next summer, a deputy energy minister said.
“Of the total amount, 3,026 MW will come from new thermal units, 1,478 MW will be generated by industrial power plants, 850 MW will be added from renewable sources, 188 MW will be produced by distributed generation systems and 2,245 MW will be added by improving the current thermal power plants through the annual overhaul,” Homayoun Haeri was also quoted as saying by the Energy Ministry’s news portal Paven.
“The Energy Ministry increased production capacity by 6,000 MW last summer, of which 1,450 MW pertained to the steam sector of combined cycle power plants, which helped save 2.2 billion cubic meters of fuel consumption,” he said, adding that by next summer, 2,000 MW steam units will be launched.
Converting a single-cycle plant to a combined-cycle one means increasing the power generation capacity without the need for using an additional fossil fuel feedstock. In addition to the economic benefit of saving fuel consumption, it has environmental benefits such as reduction in pollutants and greenhouse gases.
The construction of each steam unit increases the efficiency of power station while saving 270 million cubic meters of fuel consumption per year.
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 that also generates electricity.
Last year, 348 billion kilowatt hours of electricity were produced by the country's power plants, 95% of which came from thermal units.
According to Haeri, more than 2,200 MW will be added to the country’s power production capacity through the annual overhaul of thermal power plants, which started in August and is expected to continue until May 2023.
Domestic firms are carrying out annual maintenance work at 129 power stations.
A total of 583 gas and steam units will be ready by next June to help ensure sustainable supply during peak demand.
Most of the equipment used in thermal power plants have been indigenized. Local companies manufacture about 95% of components for power stations, which have been approved by the Institute of Standards and Industrial Research of Iran.
