Iranian power plants producing about 3,000 megawatts are dilapidated, a senior official at Iran Power Generation, Distribution and Transmission Company (Tavanir) said on Saturday.
“Plans have been made to replace these age-old plants with modern ones,” Abdolrasoul Pishahang was also quoted as saying by ISNA.
Noting that some of these plants have been replaced with modern power plants (Class F), including plants in the cities of Rey and Zahedan, Pishahang said as per the timeframe, all the outdated plants will be out of use in a maximum 2-3 years.
Asked about electricity wastage in power plants, the official said, “Wastage of electricity in power plants is so low that it may not be labeled as wastage, because the minimal electricity is actually consumed by sections such as pumps, fuel systems and filters or for updating systems.”
Pishahang said the rate of the disputed electricity consumption in gas-fueled power plants is 1.5%-2%, while the percentage for thermal plants reaches about 5%-6%.
The efficiency of Iran's power plants was put at 37% last year, but it is scheduled to reach 57% within three years and ultimately approach the global standard of 85%.
“Reducing electricity consumption in power plants is on the agenda, as related successful measures have been adopted in Shahid Rajaei Power Plant,” he said.
In recent years, Iran has put greater emphasis on the participation of domestic and foreign investors in electricity generation, with projects underway to add 40,000 MW to the national grid.
The country is the largest exporter and importer of electricity in the Middle East and exports electricity to Pakistan, Turkey, Iraq and Afghanistan. Azerbaijan and Armenia supply electricity to Iran under a swap agreement.
Iran's nominal power generation capacity stands at around 74,000, with 61,000 MW coming from thermal power plants, 12,000 MW from hydroelectric plants and only 1,000 MW from nuclear power.
