Steam-powered plants generate close to 98 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity annually, accounting for 30% of total electricity produced in thermal power plants amounting to 327 billion kWH per year.
Iran's Deputy Energy Minister Homayoun Haeri made the statement while addressing the 31st Annual International Conference of the Iranian Association of Mechanical Engineers and the Ninth Conference on Thermal Power Plant held in Tehran on May 10, ISNA reported.
“The output [98 billion kWH] helps save around 18 billion cubic meters of natural gas annually,” he added, noting that the faster power stations are converted to combined-cycle facilities, the more natural gas and alternative fuels like diesel can be saved.
The official said an estimated 359 billion kWH of power are produced per year in Iran, of which 91% are generated in thermal power stations.
“Of the total output [359 billion kWH], close to 327 billion kWh are produced by thermal [steam, gas and combined-cycle] power stations.”
Giving a breakdown, the official said of the 327 billion kWh, steam-powered plants, gas-powered stations and combined-cycle plants generate 84 billion kWh, 59 billion kWh and 183 billion kWh respectively per annum.
According to Haeri, hydropower plants, the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant in southern Iran, distributed generation stations and renewables constitute the rest of the production.
The conventional plant’s efficiency is 33% and the shift to combined cycle will raise it to 56%.
Over 95% of the equipment used in the project to convert the thermal power plant into a combined cycle system are produced domestically. In addition to upholding national standards, the parts are sent to international institutions for tests and verification.
Converting conventional plants to combined cycle units is a government priority.
A combined cycle power plant produces up to 50% more electricity from the same fuel than a traditional simple cycle power plant. This is because waste heat from a gas turbine is rerouted to the nearby steam turbine to generate power.
Geothermal Power Station
Commenting on the construction of Iran’s first geothermal power station in Meshkinshahr, Ardabil Province, Haeri said the plant is expected to be synchronized with the national power grid in August when summer demand peaks.
According to the official, the project has gained momentum as obstacles hampering the project, including financial disputes between the Energy Ministry and the project contractor, are addressed.
“The 50-megawatt station was to go on stream in 2021, but the contractor withdrew from the project due to financial disagreements with the employer [Energy Ministry],” he said.
“Eleven wells have been drilled at the site near Meshkinshahr at a depth of 3,200 meters and special turbines are being installed for power generation.”
More than $40 million have been invested so far in the venture over six years and almost 90% of the equipment, including turbines and generators, have been purchased and delivered.
The official noted that the drilling of wells by the National Iranian Drilling Company shows Iran does not need foreign knowhow from Iceland and the Philippines for such operations.
Geothermal power plants use steam from reservoirs of hot water hundreds of meters below the Earth's surface. The steam rotates a turbine that activates a generator that produces electricity.
The station is located on the heights of the volcanic Sabalan Mountain in the geothermal-rich Ardabil region, which attracts millions of tourists every year for its famed hot springs that are believed to have health benefits.
Unlike thermal units that use fossil fuel and are harmful to the environment, geothermal plants produce less emission.
Turkey, one of the leading countries in the region in the geothermal industry, is planning to more than quadruple its installed capacity to 2,500 MW by 2023 from the current 620 MW.
Iran's investment in other forms of power plants, especially thermal power stations, over four decades were made at the expense of renewables, which hardly account for 1 gigawatts of the total installed capacity at around 90 GW.
Hashem Oraei, a lecturer at the prestigious Sharif University of Technology, says the mafia-like syndicate that controls thermal power plants has created conditions in which Iran continues to depend largely on fossil fuel-based power.
“Despite the huge potential of renewables, including geothermal, solar and wind, the development of renewable energy projects is seriously impaired,” Oraei complained.
The installed capacity for renewable energy should have reached 5,000 MW by 2021, but it is below 1,000 MW and no official has explained the discrepancy.
