A high-ranking Italian economic delegation arrived in Tehran on Wednesday to hold talks with Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh, the latest in a series of European officials seeking trade deals with Iran after it reached a nuclear agreement with world powers in Vienna on July 14.
The delegation comprised Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Jentiloni, Minister of Economic Development Federica Guidi and Eni CEO Claudio Descalzi.
Alongside the ongoing trade negotiations, a four-member engineering team from a private Italian company named Broli expressed willingness to invest in Iran's hydropower industry following a visit to prospective project sites, Tasnim News Agency reported.
Italian engineers visited two power plant sites in Iran, the first of which was Tarik Dam and Power Plant, 30 km away from Rasht in northern Iran. The project is categorized as a small-scale power plant with a generation capacity of 3 megawatts.
"Such a plan can produce 16.46 million kilowatt-hours of energy per year, which is why we are willing to cooperate with Iranian energy and water experts," an Italian delegate said.
The engineering delegation also visited Siah Bisheh Dam and Power Plant project in Chalous, northern Iran, during which Iranian engineers provided them with detailed explanation of the project.
Following their visits to Tarik and Siah Bisheh projects, Broli's officials announced their readiness not only to invest but also to be technically involved in them.
Iran Water and Power Resources Development Company proposed other projects to Italian delegates for appraisal and investment.
Finmeccanica's engineering unit Fata signed a €500 million ($543 million) contract with Iran's Qadir to build a power plant, a spokesman for the Italian defense group said on Wednesday.
