Upon announcement of a public tender to finance and develop Khuzestan's dam and power plant projects, which is a top priority of the energy ministry, a couple of Iranian as well as four international Chinese companies including Power China (PC) have expressed willingness to invest in the plans, head of Khuzestan's water and electricity organization, Ahmadreza Sedaghat, was quoted by IRNA as saying. Khuzestan Province is in the southwest of the country, bordering Iraq's Basra Province and the Persian Gulf.
Sedaghat reiterated that the investments will be focused on Dez Power Plant and Dam which is an arch dam on the Dez River, Iran. It was built between 1959 and 1963 by an Italian consortium and is owned by the Khuzestan Water & Power Authority.
The official added that recently a 14-member delegation of Chinese experts from PC visited the site during which specialists exchanged views on maintenance and development of the dam. Following the visit, the PC is expected to make its financial projections. Should Khuzestan's water and electricity organization approve the details; this company can collaborate on implementing the second power plant whose production power is estimated to be 720 megawatts.
Iran’s electricity industry ranks 14th in the world and first in the Middle East in terms of electricity generation with an installed power generation capacity of 72,000 MW.
The country is the largest exporter and importer of electricity in the Middle East and exports electric power to Armenia, Pakistan, Turkey, Iraq, and Afghanistan. Azerbaijan and Armenia supply electricity to Iran under a swap agreement.
