Major industries, including automakers, steel complexes, cement factories and petrochemical plants, will become totally independent of the Power Generation, Distribution and Transmission Company (Tavanir) to meet their growing electricity demand over the next three years, spokesman of the state-run firm said.
“Industrial units have taken effective measures not to be at the mercy of Tavanir, one of which is the construction of their own power stations,” Mostafa Rajabi-Mashhadi was also quoted as saying by ILNA.
Thermal and renewable power plants with a total capacity of 14 gigawatts are being constructed by industrialists across the nation, he added, noting that when the scheme is implemented, industries will have no worries regarding electricity supply and outages.
Referring to the first power plant constructed with the investment of industries, he said the first gas unit of Shahid Bakeri Power Plant in Semnan Province with a capacity of 183 megawatts is now operational.
The construction of the second and third gas units, each with a capacity of 183 MW, is underway, he added.
Last year, the engineering and energy giant MAPNA Group signed a deal with Mines and Metals Development Investment Company to develop the combined-cycle power plant in Semnan.
The deal stipulates design, engineering, procurement, installation and commissioning of advanced gas units equipped with MAPNA’s own E-Class MGT-70(3) gas turbines.
MAPNA is a conglomerate of Iranian companies involved in the development and establishment of thermal and renewable power plants, oil and gas facilities, railroads and other industrial projects as well as manufacture of equipment.
The new plant is built next to Semnan Thermal Power Plant, comprising two gas units with a capacity of 162 MW each (totaling 324 MW), which was also built by MAPNA Group and is operating since 2010.
An agreement was signed last year between the Energy Ministry and the Ministry of Industries, Mining and Trade for the construction of power plants by industries.
According to the memorandum of understanding, 10,000 MW of power stations were initially decided to be built by industries.
Thermal Power Plants
The figure later increased to 14,000 MW, including 12,000 MW of thermal power plants and 2,000 MW of renewable stations, which will be constructed in 15 provinces.
According to the MoU, 24 power plants are to be built in 36 months and their electricity will be supplied to industries and mines.
The power plant of Mobarakeh Steel Company in Isfahan Province is the next to come on stream as per the MoU.
Industries can play a key role in boosting electricity output by embarking on power plant development projects, in which case they will no longer be at the mercy of the state-run Tavanir. This way, they will be enabled to use their own power generating plants and not be dependent on the national power grid.
In fact, industries account for 40% of Iran’s annual power consumption of 280 billion kilowatt hours.
Mining and manufacturing industries were negatively affected by the power supply crisis last summer, as they were forced to halt operations repeatedly in June and July because the state-run utility company could not produce sufficient electricity.
When heavy industrial customers are equipped with their own power stations, they will not need to stop their business in summer when demand exceeds supply.
If industries complete their power projects, the Energy Ministry guarantees that adequate power will be supplied to factories even during peak demand hours, regardless of households’ consumption level.
All industrial units that consume more than 2 megawatts of electricity per month are charged 2.5 cents per kilowatt hour.
As per the new bill passed by the Majlis last year, electricity tariffs for energy-intensive industries, namely cement factories, oil refineries and petrochemical and steel companies, have increased fivefold since March.
