By 2012, Iran had roughly 400 power plant units. By the end of 2013,
Iran had a total installed electricity generation capacity of 70,000 MW, which had been increased from 90 MW in 1948, and 7024 MW in 1978. It is planned to add more than 5,000 MW of generation capacity annually to the power grid, which will almost double the total power generation capacity to 122,000 MW by 2022. The
government of Iran plans to
privatize 20 power plants by September 2010. Iran's
peak demand for electricity was 45,693 MW during the summer of 2013.
It was predicted Iran accounts for 17.08% of
MENA power generation by 2014. The natural gas was the major fuel used to generate electricity in Iran in 2009, accounting for an estimated 56.8% of
primary energy demand (PED), followed by oil at 40.8% and hydro power at 1.4%. As of 2010, the average efficiency of power plants in Iran was 38 percent. The figure should reach to 45 percent within five years and 50 percent under
Vision 2025.
Electricity generation in 2008, accounted for 203.8 billion kWh or roughly one percent of world's total production, which was increased by 5.9 percent comparing with the year before. In 2008, the total
electricity generated was 190.2 billion kWh which 93.3% was generated by
power plants affiliated with the
Ministry of Energy and 13.6 billion kWh (6.7%) by other institutions, which were mostly from the private sector.
The largest share of electricity (91.1 billion kWh) was generated by
steam power plant
A thermal power station is a type of power station in which heat energy is converted to electrical energy. In a steam-generating cycle heat is used to boil water in a large pressure vessel to produce high-pressure steam, which drives a ste ...
s while
diesel power plants accounted for the smallest share of generation (0.2 billion kWh). In 2008, the highest growth in generation of electricity belonged to
gas
Gas is one of the four fundamental states of matter (the others being solid, liquid, and plasma).
A pure gas may be made up of individual atoms (e.g. a noble gas like neon), elemental molecules made from one type of atom (e.g. oxygen), or ...
and
combined cycle power plant
A combined cycle power plant is an assembly of heat engines that work in tandem from the same source of heat, converting it into mechanical energy. On land, when used to make electricity the most common type is called a combined cycle gas turb ...
s with 9.3 percent growth rate while the amount of electricity generated by
hydroelectric power plant
Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined an ...
s declined by 1.7 percent. As of 2010, the consumer price of electricity in Iran was 1.6 US cents per kilowatt hour while the real production cost was about 8.0 US cents.
(See also:
Cost of electricity by different sources)
In 2010, 900,000 jobs were directly or indirectly related to the power industry in Iran. Currently, Iran's spares power capacity stands at 3 per cent, but this amount is much lower than the ideal 25 percent of peak power used.
It has been estimated that 23.5 percent of the electricity generation is wasted in the transmission network.
Iran's
power grid has been connected to seven neighboring countries
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
,
Pakistan,
Iraq,
Turkey,
Armenia,
Azerbaijan and
Turkmenistan and annually, exports 5.5 TWh of electricity.
Manufacturing
Electric power industry in Iran has become self-sufficient in producing the required equipment to build power plants. While most of the electricity generators are run by the government, the equipment producers and contractors are generally from the private sector.
Iran is among the top ten manufacturers of
gas turbine
A gas turbine, also called a combustion turbine, is a type of continuous flow internal combustion engine. The main parts common to all gas turbine engines form the power-producing part (known as the gas generator or core) and are, in the directio ...
s with a capacity up to 160 megawatts. Iran engineers at JEMCO (a subsidiary of
IDRO) have succeeded to develop and produce one and four-megawatt
generators. Iran can manufacture materials for over 80 percent of hydraulic turbines and over 90 percent of gas turbines. In the near future, Iran can become a major player in building
power plant with advanced technology (2009). Iran plans to build its first indigenous gas turbines by 2015. Iran has achieved the technical expertise to setup hydroelectric, gas and combined cycle power plants. Iran is one of the four countries in the world which can manufacture advanced
V94.2 gas turbine
A gas turbine, also called a combustion turbine, is a type of continuous flow internal combustion engine. The main parts common to all gas turbine engines form the power-producing part (known as the gas generator or core) and are, in the directio ...
s. The
Industrial Development and Renovation Organization of Iran (IDRO) is currently building the country's first 4-megawatt (MW) Combined Heat and Power (CHP) turbo generator in cooperation with the private sector.
Nuclear power plants
Darkhovin Nuclear Power Plant is Iran's first indigenously designed and built
power plant besides the
research reactor
Research reactors are nuclear fission-based nuclear reactors that serve primarily as a neutron source. They are also called non-power reactors, in contrast to power reactors that are used for electricity production, heat generation, or marit ...
of
IR-40.
Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant
The Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant ( fa, نیروگاه اتمی بوشهر) is a nuclear power plant in Iran south of Tehran ( southeast of the city of Bushehr), between the fishing villages of Halileh and Bandargeh along the Persian Gulf.
Con ...
is Iran's first
nuclear power plant and it has been manufactured with the technical assistance of
Russia.
International projects
Iran is not only self-sufficient in power plant construction but has also concluded a number of contracts on implementing projects in neighboring states.
[Iran-Daily:Hydroelectric Power Generation Will Increase](_blank)
As of 2010, Iranian energy and resource development firms are involved in 50 projects worth over USD 2.2 billion in more than 20 countries across the world. As at 2011,
MAPNA
MAPNA Group ( fa, گروه مپنا) is a group of Iranian companies involved in development and execution of thermal and renewable power plants, oil & gas, railway transportation and other industrial projects as well as manufacturing main equipme ...
was building power plants in Syria, Oman and Iraq and negotiations were underway to build two power plants in Lebanon.
One of Iran’s most important international projects will see the construction of a $200-million hydroelectric dam in
Nicaragua starting 2011. Iran is currently engaged in dam construction in
Tajikistan,
Armenia and
Azerbaijan, and consultations are underway with a number of other countries.
Kenya,
Sri Lanka,
Bolivia and
Mali are the potential target markets being considered for exporting the country’s technical and engineering services. In 2010, Iran won a contract to build a dam in
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
and the third contract to build a power plant station in
Syria.
In December 2005 a
wind farm was put in operation at
Pushkin Pass
Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin (; rus, links=no, Александр Сергеевич ПушкинIn pre-Revolutionary script, his name was written ., r=Aleksandr Sergeyevich Pushkin, p=ɐlʲɪkˈsandr sʲɪrˈɡʲe(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ ˈpuʂkʲɪn, ...
in
Armenia. Total installed capacity of the farm is 2.64 MW, comprise from the four 660 kW wind turbines. Wind farm was built by support of 3.1 mln US$ grant from the government of Islamic Republic of Iran. The Armenian and Iranian energy sectors are currently jointly constructing the
Iran-Armenia Wind Farm
Lori 1 Wind Farm is a wind farm in Armenia located along the Bazum Mountains at Pushkin Pass in Lori, Armenia. It is the country's only wind farm. The wind farm consists of four 660-kW wind turbines and has a capacity of 2.64 MWe.
Completed ...
which is set to become the country's largest
wind farm, having an installed electric capacity of 90
MW. As at 2012, Iran is building seven large power plants in Syria, Oman, Iraq, and Tajikistan.
Foreign direct investment
According to the
Ministry of Energy,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
has invested $445 million in construction of the Pareh-Sar combined cycle power plant in northern Iran, while the
UAE
The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...
has invested $720 million in construction of a gas power plant as well as a combined cycle power plant in
Isfahan and
Shiraz. In 2015, Iran and Russia signed an agreement regarding the construction of eight thermal power plants in Iran, with a total installed capacity of 2,800 Megawatts (MW). The investment per MW will be $3.57 million ($10 billion in total).
Privatization
Mapna
MAPNA Group ( fa, گروه مپنا) is a group of Iranian companies involved in development and execution of thermal and renewable power plants, oil & gas, railway transportation and other industrial projects as well as manufacturing main equipme ...
Company. Sahand, Bistoun, Shazand, Shahid Montazeri, Tous, Shahid Rajaei and Neishabour power stations are among the profit-making plants, work on privatizing them will be finalized by late March 2007. Jahrom, Khalij-e Fars (Persian Gulf) and Sahand power plants will be ceded to the private sector in 2009.
All domestic power plants will be privatized gradually, except those the government feels it should run to ensure security of the national electricity grid. Power plants of Damavand, Mashhad, Shirvan, Kerman, Khalij-e Fars, Abadan, Bisotoon, Sanandaj, Manjil and Binalood, which have been turned into public limited firms, are ready for privatization. As of 2010, 20 power plants were ready for
privatization in Iran
According to the Fourth Five-Year Economic Development Plan (2005–2010), the Privatization Organization of Iran affiliated with the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Finance is in charge of setting prices and ceding shares to the general public ...
. Upon ceding the 20 power plants to
IPO, some 40 percent of the capacity of power plants nationwide will be assigned to the private and cooperative sectors. As of 2011, about 45 power plants across the country were to be handed over to the private sector. In 2012, it was announced that Iran's government which has already turned over 17 of its 45 power plants to the private sector since 2008, will transfer 28 more plants with an estimated value of $11.4 billion (USD), by March 2013.
Energy/electricity bourse
The new energy/electricity bourse will be inaugurated in 2012. This will bring about more competition and transparency in Iran’s electricity market. Experts believe that following the launch of the
subsidies reform plan, the electricity industry will undergo significant changes and will become more appealing to private investors. Iran is the 16th electricity producer in the world.
As at 2012, Iran had over 400 power plant units and 38 electricity distribution companies which buy the electricity from producers. Iran has over 100 companies which consume more than 20 MW of electricity per year. The average price of each kilowatt of electricity is 450
rials (around 5 cents) during the first phase of the
Subsidy Reform Law. The average final price of each kilowatt of electricity will be 1000 rials (around 10 cents) in 2015.
According to the
government of Iran, power stations have to pay the export price of gas if they want to export electricity and must improve efficiency.
Iran's electricity export and related technical and engineering services exports was valued at $4 billion in 2011. In 2010, the total of Iran’s electricity exports to
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
,
Iraq (650 MW),
Azerbaijan,
Armenia,
Pakistan and
Turkey reached 878 megawatts and the total of imports from Armenia (237 MW) and
Turkmenistan was recorded at 463 megawatts.
Jordan, India, Oman, Qatar, Russia, Syria, and the UAE are the new countries that have expressed interest in buying electricity from Iran.
Waste to energy
Fossil
Geothermal
Hydroelectric
In service
Proposed or under construction
Pumped storage hydroelectric
Nuclear
In service
Under construction
Solar
In service
With about 300 clear sunny days a year and an average of 2,200 kilowatt-hour
solar radiation per square meter, Iran has a great potential to tap
solar energy.
Under construction
Tidal and wave power
Wind
Others
Decentralized power generation
In addition to the above power plants, there was 1800 MW cumulative installed capacity in 2011, which belonged to small scale
decentralized power plants, some of which were not connected to the national grid, and many being privately built and run. This capacity is planned for increase to more than 10,000 MW with emphasis on
renewable energy and
trigeneration. Similarly there was 418 MW of capacity belonging to
diesel generator
A diesel generator (DG) (also known as a diesel Genset) is the combination of a diesel engine with an electric generator (often an alternator) to generate electrical energy. This is a specific case of engine generator. A diesel compression-ig ...
based plants supplying hard to reach areas.
See also
*
International rankings of Iran
*
Iranian Economic Reform Plan
*
Energy in Iran
Iran has the fourth largest oil reserves and the 2nd largest natural gas reserves in the world. The nation is a member of OPEC, and generates approximately 50% of state revenue through oil exports.
Most energy in Iran is generated through ...
References
External links
Iran Water & Power Development CompanyTavanir- Iran's Electric Power Generation Organization
Energy Exchange of Iran;Specialized reports
Iran Power Market Outlook to 2030, 55-page report, 2012Iran power, 57-page report, 2010Thermal Power Market Outlook in Iran to 2020, 78-page report, 2010;Videos
Bushehr I and II Nuclear Power Plant, Iran
{{DEFAULTSORT:List Of Power Stations In Iran
*
Electric power in Iran
Power Stations
A power station, also referred to as a power plant and sometimes generating station or generating plant, is an industrial facility for the generation of electric power. Power stations are generally connected to an electrical grid.
Many po ...
Power Stations
A power station, also referred to as a power plant and sometimes generating station or generating plant, is an industrial facility for the generation of electric power. Power stations are generally connected to an electrical grid.
Many po ...
Iran