Steam units are incomplete at several combined cycle power plants that have the capacity to produce 16,000 megawatt of electricity.
The mentioned power plants’ efficiency currently stands at 32 percent, Iran’s Fars News Agency reported on August 20.
Once the steam units of these power plants come on stream, their efficiency will reach 47 percent. Tehran has signed contracts with different contractors to complete steam units of ten combined cycle power plants.
In 2005, the country was constructing a number of power plants with the capacity to produce 17,000 megawatt of electricity, but this figure gradually was reduced. By 2013, only 3,800 megawatt was under construction.
Iran’s total electricity generation capacity has surpassed 71,000 megawatts recently.
The country’s electricity consumption peak is expected to reach 50,000 megawatt in summer.
The power generation capacity in Iran has grown by 7 percent annually during the past 10 years.
Tehran seeks to become a major regional exporter of electricity and has attracted more than $1.1 billion in investments for the construction of three new power plants.
Based on the Fifth Five-Year Economic Development Plan, Iran should annually add 5,000 MW to its power generation capacity at the cost of about 3 billion euros per year. Iran plans to boost its electricity generation capacity to reach 73GW, by the end of the Fifth Five-Year Economic Development Plan (March 2016).
Iran plans to convert all the gas power plants to combined cycle plants. Iran’s Deputy Energy Minister Houshang Falahatian said on May 10 that by doing so the productivity of the plants will increase to 48 percent from the current figure of 32 percent, Iran’s IRIB News Agency reported.
