The first gas-powered unit of the Kahnuj Combined Cycle Power Plant with 162MW capacity in Kerman Province came on stream on Monday, Fars news agency reported.
It consists of one steam-powered unit and two gas-powered units and the entire plant will be completed at a total cost of $53 million in the city of Jiroft under a build-own-operate (BOO) contract. In BOO contracts, a private company builds, operates and owns some parts or all of the project.
Around 484 MW of electricity will be added to the national power grid when the first development phase of the Kahnuj complex is completed. According to initial projections, its second gas unit will start operation in February, with the steam unit slated for late 2015.
Two storage units, each with the capacity to hold 15,000 cubic meters of feedstock are built in the complex. Gas is consumed as the primary and diesel as secondary feedstock.
Efficiency of the combined cycle plant is estimated at nearly 50 percent. Such plants normally use both gas and steam turbines to produce up to 50 percent more electricity from the same fuel than their traditional counterparts.
Efficiency of power plants across the country is estimated to be around 37 percent, but is scheduled to increase to 57 percent by 2017, and ultimately reach the global standard of 85 percent. Improving the efficiency of power plants will help reduce fuel consumption, save generation costs and help protect the environment.
The national grid has an installed generation capacity of 72,000 MW. Iran’s electricity industry ranks 14th in the world and first in the Middle East in terms of electricity generation. It is the largest exporter and importer of electricity in the Middle East and exports electric power to Armenia, Pakistan, Turkey, Iraq, and Afghanistan. Azerbaijan and Armenia supply electricity to Iran under a swap agreement.
