The total capacity of renewable energy sources across Iran has increased by 1.29% in the first month of winter (Dec. 22, 2022-Jan. 20) compared to the previous month.
With the launch of a project in the one-month period, the renewables capacity in the country has reached 1,004 megawatts, IRNA reported.
According to the Energy Ministry’s data, the highest share of renewables, i.e. 430 MW, is provided by solar power plants.
Next come wind farms, small-scale photovoltaic systems and hydroelectric power stations with 342 MW, 109 MW and 101 MW respectively.
A total of 12 MW and 10 MW are generated by biomass power plants and expansion turbines (turbo-expanders) respectively.
In related news, the chairman of the Board of Directors of the Association of Iranian Manufacturers and Suppliers of Renewable Energy Products and Services (known as SATKA) said within five years and beginning from next fiscal year (starts on March 21), large industries are required to meet 5% of their electricity demand through renewable power plants, 1% each year.
“About $8 million have been earmarked for large industries to help facilitate the construction of their renewable power plants,” ILNA quoted Hamidreza Salehi as saying.
Regarding the small- and medium-sized industries, he said, “There are 50,000 industrial units only in the industrial towns and regions of Iran. If each industrial unit installs an average of 200 kilowatts of solar systems on rooftops, 10,000 MW of new solar capacity will be added to the country’s total renewable capacity, and no industry will worry about the blackouts that can happen during the summer when electricity consumption increases.”
As per the contract between the state-run Power Generation, Distribution and Transmission Company (Tavanir) and industrialists, the former is obliged to help all industrial units set up solar or wind farms, with stable power all year round, especially during peak demand hours in June and July.
The construction of renewable plants requires much less funding than building thermal power stations, the smallest of which costs $3 billion and they will take a minimum three years to be synchronized with the national power grid.
Helping Industries
Tavanir’s power deficit amounted to 13,000 MW last June and manufacturing industries bore the brunt of the grave power supply crisis, as they were forced to halt operations repeatedly in June and July because the state-run utility company could not supply sufficient electricity.
Based on data from the Energy Ministry and Tavanir, the gap between power consumption and supply will keep widening in the coming years and if industries do not invest in short-term power generation schemes, the scale and scope of their problems will increase exponentially.
More than 46,000 industrial units are operating in 820 industrial towns across the country, 93% of which are considered small, 4% medium and 3% large.
Unlike thermal power stations, the construction of solar photovoltaic (PV) farms is not time-consuming, nor does it require massive funding, and more importantly they are eco-friendly.
The Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Organization (Satba) plans to add 10 gigawatts to the current renewable electricity capacity of Iran in the next four years with the help of local and foreign investors. The initial estimate is that about 7,500 MW of solar power plants and about 2,500 MW of wind farms will be built by 2026.
The current 1 GW of electricity produced through renewable resources account for about 1% of the total power production capacity in the country (90 GW).
As per plans, by the next summer, 500 MW will be added to the renewables capacity, most of which will be from solar farms.
Private companies have invested over $1 billion in the expanding renewable sector, mainly solar and wind.
Iran has a diverse climate with vast windy lands and more than 300 sunny days a year, which make it ideal to tap into wind and solar power.
