Power Export to Yerevan to Increase
An official with the Iranian Energy Ministry announced of new agreements with Armenia on the construction of a dam on Aras River and two power plants by the river in both countries.
Mohammad-Reza Rezazadeh, the managing director of Iran's Water and Power Resources Development Company (IWPCO), said on Sunday that serious steps were taken on the implementation of the two projects during the recent visit of the President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to Armenia, Mehr News Agency reported.
He stated, "In fact this project is a joint exploitation from Aras border River which extends over 40 kilometers between the two countries."
He underlined according to the project one power plant is to be constructed in Iran and one in Armenia, both on the banks of Aras River.
The official noted the mechanism which is planned to be used for the implementation of the project and procuring the fund for it is that the generated electricity via the power plants will be sold to the investor of the project.
This way, he said, the purchase of electricity will be guaranteed.
Dam Projects
Deputy energy minister for water and wastewater affairs said President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has called for the completion of all dam projects by the end of the Fifth Five-Year Economic Development Plan (2010-15).
Mohammadreza Attarzadeh pointed out that close to 135 dam projects are under construction across the country and adding feasibility studies are being conducted on the same number, Inn.ir wrote.
He elaborated that Iran has managed to construct dams with of 12 billion cubic meters of storage capacity during the current Iranian year (started March 21, 2011).
The official mentioned that efforts made with respect to dam construction and increasing water storage capacity have decreased the pressure during drought period.
Despite the existence of 570 dams across the country, dam construction projects are still underway, he concluded.
Iran's First Vice President Mohammad-Reza Rahimi announced last October that Iran has the world's third biggest dam construction industry.
According to Rahimi, 135 dam projects are currently underway in Iran that will transform the level of agricultural production in the country once they come on stream.
Iran has engaged in dam construction activities in Tajikistan, Armenia and Azerbaijan, and consultations are underway with a number of other countries.
In addition to the necessity of generating electricity, Iran needs dams to effectively control and manage its water shortage across the country. The country's central provinces are located close to vast deserts and suffer from severe water shortages that threaten agricultural operations.
Electricity Exports
The managing director of Iran Grid Management Company (IGMC) said on Sunday that Iran's electricity exports to Armenia will increase following the completion of a power transmission line between the two countries.
Currently, the new transmission line is under construction in East Azarbaijan province, Mir Fattah Ghareh Bagh said, Presstv reported.
He added that the 400-kilovolt power transfer line will connect Iran's electricity network to the Armenian city of Agarak, Aragatsotn province.
According to Deputy Energy Minister Mohammad Behzad, the new power transmission line aims at exporting Iran's electricity to Georgia, Russia and Europe.
The country is currently exchanging electricity with Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Iraq, Pakistan, Turkey and Turkmenistan and plans to add 5,000 megawatts of capacity annually to its power grid.
The Iranian Energy Ministry statistics show that the country will be exporting electricity to the tune of $1 billion by March 2012.
Iran's total power generation capacity stands at 63,403 megawatts while the total length of the power grid exceeds 780,000 kilometers.
Exchange of electricity with neighboring countries reached 1,341 megawatts in late December 2010. The top exporter was Armenia with 237 megawatts, and the top importer of Iranian electricity was Iraq with 650 megawatts.
Iran seeks to become a major regional exporter of electricity and has attracted more than $1.1 billion in investment to build three new power plants.
© Iran Daily 2012
