To unlock its untapped potential in energy sector, Iran needs to shift to renewable energy sources.
Claudio Providas, the United Nations Development Program’s resident representative in Iran, made at the Iranian Energy Ministry's Niroo Research Institute, the ministry’s news portal Paven reported.
Iran could tap into clean energy but despite scientific studies and steps taken in this regard, the real improvement potential has not been exploited yet, he added.
Iran is overly dependent on thermal power, as renewables account for hardly 1% of the total annual output of 90,000 MW.
“UNDP is willing to invest in urban electrification initiatives of Iran,” he said, adding that the organization is ready to transfer knowhow to the country and help fund similar projects in mega cities.
According to the UNDP official, investing in green energy is unavoidable and Iran needs to realize its potential in the sector through collaboration with successful nations in this industry.
Electrification and urbanization are profoundly transforming energy production and consumption systems globally, affecting the way human activities in cities relate to each other and the environment at multiple scales. Electricity has increasingly become “society’s fuel of choice,” accounting for 19% of total final energy consumption today, compared to just over 15% in 2000.
“Urban electrification can help reduce air pollution and protect the environment of cities,” Ali Vatani, the head of Niroo Research Institute, said, adding that UNDP’s financial assistance can play a major role in developing the green energy infrastructure of Iran.
Curtailing Natural Gas
According to Mohammad Amin Zanganeh, Iran Renewable Energy Association’s secretary-general, Iran's potential to harness renewable energy, including solar and wind power, can help curtail natural gas consumption by a massive 70 billion cubic meters annually.
“Close to 70 bcm of gas are burnt in thermal power stations in Iran each year to generate around 300 billion kilowatt hours of electricity. The same amount of power can be produced, if untapped solar and wind energy potentials are unlocked,” he said.
Studies by the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Organization have shown that wind and solar farms with an installed capacity of 40,000 megawatts and 80,000 MW of power respectively can be constructed in Iran, which capacity far exceeds the country’s demand of 70,000 MW and the surplus could be exported to energy-hungry neighbors.
According to the official, $85 billion worth of liquefied fuels were burnt in Iran’s thermal power plants in 2022, as the National Iranian Oil Company was unable to supply sufficient gas to them due to high household consumption.
“Investing the money in the renewable energy sector could have built solar farms with a production capacity of 14,000 MW of power,” he said.
“If one-thousandth of the country's total area is allocated to solar power generation, it will produce 1,400 gigawatts.”
A standard 1 KW solar panel takes about 1.5 square meters of space, so it is viable to reach solar power production of 1,400 GW with timely investments.
UNDP is a United Nations agency tasked with helping countries eliminate poverty and achieve sustainable economic growth and human development. It emphasizes developing local capacity towards long-term self-sufficiency and prosperity.
Japan and UNDP have already cooperated to restore Lake Urmia, once the second-largest saltwater lake in the Middle East.
Desalination Unit
According to Providas, the first joint UNDP-Japan desalination unit is expected to be constructed in Iran's southeastern province of Sistan-Baluchestan to supply water to at least 50,000 people in Chabahar’s rural regions, namely Komb, Ramin, Osmanabad and Balesar.
“UNDP and Japan have signed an agreement to build desalination plants in Iran to supply underprivileged areas with potable water and required resources to develop farming activities,” he added.
According to the UNDP official, supplying the residents with desalinated water is of great importance, as not only can it have welfare benefits, but it will also enable them to develop their farmland.
“Sistan-Baluchestan is one of the largest and driest provinces in Iran and we are planning to take advantage of desalinated water to quench the thirst in the parched region. This trip is aimed at examining the issues and potentials of the area. We will help UNDP in its mission to transfer and process seawater to rural thirsty areas,” he said, expressing hope that the collaboration will yield positive results.
Located in one of the world’s most water-stressed regions, Iran is among the top 20 countries with unsustainable water consumption.
Desertification, digging of thousands of illegal water wells nationwide, inefficient farming and water-intensive industries are making a bad situation worse, as the water deficit grows in tandem with prohibitive consumption in all sectors, mainly agriculture.
