Iran to advance solar plants at dams under government policy
Aligning with the policy of Masoud Pezeshkian’s to develop solar energy infrastructure, an official at Iran’s Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Organization (SATBA) announced that the construction of the solar power plants alongside dams nationwide is on the agenda.
Hassan Ahmadi, Director of the Engineering Office at SATBA, referencing the government's policy for developing solar power plants in the country, stated, "Accordingly, the construction of solar power plants alongside dams has been placed on the agenda."
In an interview with IRNA, Ahmadi added, "A memorandum of understanding has recently been signed with the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Organization of Iran to develop solar power plants at the sites of constructed dams, leveraging the availability of prepared land, existing electricity grids, and other advantages."
Emphasizing that "under this memorandum, 500 megawatts of electricity can be generated through this initiative," he noted, "Given the country’s capacity in terms of sunny hours, the development of solar power plants is a valuable resource for electricity supply."
This year, government offices are required to source at least 20% of their electricity from renewable energy. President Pezeshkian issued a two-month compliance period for government agencies to install solar panels, effective June 21.
Simultaneously with the unprecedented increase in air temperature in recent weeks and the likelihood of its continuation in the coming days, electricity consumption is predicted to reach 77,000 megawatts. This is while this level of consumption occurred last year during the peak network load periods.
Ahmadi recalled that over the past four decades, Iran Water and Power Resources Development Company has implemented over 70% of the country’s hydroelectric power plants, describing these plants as part of renewable facilities that "consume no fuel and provide significant support to the national electricity grid."
"In recent years, the pace of developing such power plants has slowed due to certain financial challenges and constraints. Nevertheless, viable projects still exist that warrant construction and should be pursued," he added.
Development of pumped-storage power plants
Also, Ahmadi said, "Renewable and wind power plants may not align their production with consumption periods; for instance, wind plants might operate at night due to wind availability while the grid has no demand for it."
He explained, "To address this issue, other countries connect the generated electricity to pumped-storage power plants. This allows surplus electricity to be stored and fed into the grid during peak consumption times."
The Director of the Engineering Office at SATBA continued, "If we develop renewable power plants and simultaneously expand pumped-storage power plants at certain dams, the utilization of renewable energy will yield better performance, and we will achieve greater stability in electricity supply from these plants."