About 95% of power industry equipment are currently produced by Iranian manufacturers, said Mojtaba Akbari, managing director of the specialized parent company for the management and supply of water and electricity goods (Satkab).
Domestic brands have become distinguished in terms of both quality and quantity, and there is a demand for Iranian power equipment from neighboring countries, ISNA reported.
Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan are among top export destinations for electricity equipment.
Akbari noted that the overhaul operations inside the country are carried out by domestic experts, without any international help despite the US sanctions imposed on Iran’s energy industry.
The United States reimposed tough economic sanctions after unilaterally abandoning the landmark Iran nuclear deal in May 2018. The sanctions, particularly on the energy, banking, insurance and shipping sectors, bar US companies from trading with Iran. Foreign firms are not spared.
In spite of the sanctions, Iran is supervising the overhaul and repair services of several power plants in Turkey and Iraq.
A problem of thermal power plants in Iran is that many have long outlived their usefulness. Power plants built more than half a century ago are still in service, largely due to the government’s inability to replace them under the difficult economic conditions. This is while equipment and parts used in power stations must be repaired or replaced after a certain period.
In spite of the US sanctions imposed on the country’s energy industry, Iran is supervising the overhaul and repair services of several power plants in Turkey and Iraq
In view of the expertise of domestic manufacturers, components made locally have been approved by the Institute of Standards and Industrial Research of Iran.
In addition to upholding national standards, the parts are sent to international institutions for tests and verification.
Iran is currently among the top five countries in the world in power plant construction and manufactures a variety of machineries, turbines, generators and control systems.
Akbari said in a bid to strengthen the link between the industry and knowledge-based firms, Satkab and Iran Transfo Company will invest on constructing the Electricity and Energy Innovation Factory in Zanjan Province.
The new unit will serve as a research and development platform for startups and knowledge-based companies to expand their activities in the electricity and energy fields, he added.
Referring to the electricity supply in the country, he said all the urban areas and 99% of villages are linked to the power grid.
According to the Energy Ministry and based on data from the state-affiliated Power Generation, Distribution and Transmission Company, the length of distribution and transmission lines has reached 951,000 km nationwide and projects are underway so that the length of the grid reaches 955,000 km by the end of the current Iranian year (March 20).
Iran’s installed power generation capacity has reached 90 gigawatts, of which 72,600 MW are produced in thermal power plants and the rest is generated by hydroelectric, renewable, nuclear and cogeneration units.
