Iran's electricity exports has fallen by nearly 40 percent in the present Iranian calendar year (started March 21) compared to the same period four years ago, ISNA said in a report.
Power exports accounted for 624 million kilowatt-hours in the March-April period, approximately a 40 percent drop from 1034 million kWh exported in the same period last year.
The figure is also significantly below the level of power exports in the same period in the past four years, including 823 million kWh in 2011, 1143 million kWh in 2012 and 1167 million kWh in 2013. However, plans call for increasing electricity exports to around 25 billion kWh in three years as Iran aims to capitalize on power exchange in the region, with the priority having been given to the neighboring countries.
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. In addition, value of technical and engineering services exports in the electricity and water sectors is estimated at $2.5 billion in the previous year, with nearly 90 percent of the country's total exports of engineering services belonging to the two key sectors.
