Close to 3,000 megawatts in new power capacity will be added to the national grid to meet the electricity peak in summer, the managing director of Iran’s Thermal Power Plants Holding Company said.
“About 2,000 MW of the plan are already in place and the remaining 1,000 MW will be synchronized with the network before summer demand hikes," Mohsen Tarztalab was also quoted as saying by the Energy Ministry's news portal.
"The steam units in Kashan power station in Isfahan province, Jahrom plant in Fars Province and Parand power plant, 30 kilometers southwest of Tehran, as well as the gas-powered units of Caspian power station in Mazandaran Province and Hormoz plant in Hormozgan Province will go on stream to help TPPHC fulfill its plan."
He added that efforts are also underway to implement the Dalahoo Combined Cycle Power Plant in Kermanshah Province before the hot season arrives.
According to the official, the new projects will push Iran's installed power generation capacity up and above 80,000 MW.
Total electricity production capacity stands at 77,000 MW, of which over 64,000 MW are generated in thermal power plants operated by TPPHC. In addition, 12,000 MW are supplied by hydroelectric plants and 1,000 MW from the sole nuclear power plant in Bushehr.
The TPPHC chief noted that the new capacity is expected to help the ministry avoid periodic outages during the sizzling summer, which follows an unusually dry winter.
The country may face a double whammy of critical water shortages and blackouts since last winter was a gloomy season for rainfalls.
National electricity demand is forecast to exceed 57,000 MW this summer, as people turn on air-conditioners to alleviate simmering temperatures.
The country's power demand hit a historic high of 55,400 MW in July, up from about 53,000 MW in the fiscal 2016-17.
According to Tarztalab, by the end of the Sixth Five-Year Development Plan (2017-22), total power generation capacity should increase by 26,000 MW, of which 19,000 MW should come from thermal power.
Simultaneous Measures
Iran has decided to phase out inefficient power plants, improve the aging electricity infrastructure and adopt modern power production technology simultaneously.
"Under regulations outlined by the Energy Ministry, all new power plant units must have efficiency of 58% and above," Tarztalab said.
Almost 80% of domestic electricity demand are met by aging thermal plants that have been operating for decades.
It is reported that steps have been taken to gradually convert the conventional plants into efficient combined-cycle units.
Tarztalab said facilities to build a 160-MW plant in Zahedan, the provincial capital of Sistan-Baluchestan Province, have been purchased by his company as part of efforts to boost electricity generation via combined-cycle power stations.
