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Int’l Tender for Bandar Abbas Power Plant

Iran has added 15,000 MW to its power production capacity over the past five years.
Iran has added 15,000 MW to its power production capacity over the past five years.

Iran’s Thermal Power Plants Holding Company (TPPH) is planning a tender for domestic and foreign investors to build a combined-cycle unit at Geno Power Plant in south Iran, TPPH’s chief executive said.

“Conversion of simple-cycle plants into combined-cycle ones will help save $2 billion in annual spending,” Mohsen Tarztalab was quoted as saying by Mehr News Agency on Wednesday.

TPPH has started the prequalification round for the power plant which is located in the southern port city of Bandar Abbas in Hormozgan Province.

A combined-cycle power plant, or CCPP, uses both gas and steam turbines to produce up to 50% more electricity from the same fuel input than a traditional plant.

Referring to the TPPH’s tight schedule for building the new steam unit, Tarztalab noted that the project is expected to be completed in about three years.

The CEO said that his company is active in attracting investment and now has plans for announcing international tenders in six months for construction of power plants under build, own, operate (BOO) contracts. Tarztalab pointed out that the Energy Ministry will underwrite the investments in the new power projects.

“Replacing simple-cycle with combined-cycle units is a major investment opportunity in Iran,” he said.

According to reports, 34 state-owned gas-powered units as well as 59 privately-run gas and steam plants with electricity output of more than 7,500 megawatts are set for conversion into combined-cycle units.

With the conversion, the plants’ efficiency will rise by as much as 14% as gas consumption would be cut by almost 12 billion cubic meters a year. The plan will also curb emission of greenhouse gases by 43 million tons annually.

“The sixth economic development plan (2016-21) calls for building several power plants with total output capacity of 26,000 MW,” he said, noting that Iran is behind on plans to add power generation capacity by roughly 8,000 MW.

In addition, the dilapidated power plants, which currently produce 3,000 MW, should be decommissioned while 7,500 MW is produced by power stations that are more than 35 years old.

Tarztalab said Iran managed to add 15,000 MW to its power production capacity since 2011.

Around 62,000 MW, or 80% of Iran’s 75,000-MW output, is generated from thermal plants that burn fossil fuels. In addition, 12,000 MW comes from hydroelectric plants and 1,000 MW from the sole nuclear power plant in Bushehr, south of Iran.

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