Pezeshkian urges industrialists to expedite solar panel investment
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Tuesday urged the country’s manufacturers and industrialists to accelerate investment in solar panels, saying that without reliable energy supplies, “development will be meaningless.”
Speaking at the National Industry and Mining Day ceremony, Pezeshkian said his government was expanding solar capacity nationwide as part of efforts to promote clean energy, IRNA reported.
“I have repeatedly stressed in government meetings that power and gas to industry should not be cut, but circumstances forced us to do so,” he said.
“About IRR 3,200 trillion in lost output is due to lack of energy.”
Iran has for years rationed electricity and gas to heavy industries such as steel and petrochemicals during peak demand to ensure households are supplied, a policy the Ministry of Industry says costs the economy around $10 billion annually.
To offset the damage, the government has offered incentives for industries to build dedicated power plants, particularly solar farms, to cover part of their own demand.
Pezeshkian said more than 1,000 megawatts of solar panels had already been installed but stressed this was not enough.
“The government has committed to at least 7,000 megawatts of power generation from solar panels,” he said, calling on companies and banks that pledged to support the program to “deliver on their obligations.”
“If we have energy, no factory or production unit will be shut down. Everyone must step forward to resolve this problem,” he added.
Exports, renewable energy in future strategy
At the ceremony, which also honored the country’s top industrialists, Minister of Industry, Mining and Trade, Mohammad Atabak, outlined his vision for the country’s economic future, stressing the importance of exports and renewable energy as the industrial sector grapples with rising costs and energy shortages.
“Our view of industry in one sentence is: Iran, leading industry, mining as a value creator, and smart trade,” Atabak said at the National Industry and Mining Day ceremony. “This phrase sums up our perspective on the future of industry, mining and trade in the coming years.”
Atabak said boosting exports would play a central role in the ministry’s future program, to be pursued in line with President Pezeshkian’s regional policies and Iran’s participation in international frameworks such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the Eurasian Economic Union and BRICS.
Atabak noted that Iran’s production sector faced “imbalances” beyond energy shortages, including two major challenges — rising input costs and energy constraints. “The increase in costs leads to a decrease in demand, and this can create problems for our industries,” he said.
He added that Iran’s traditional energy advantage had eroded due to higher prices, underscoring the need to remove obstacles to growth and sustain industrial development.
“With a focus on saving, gradual increases, and optimizing consumption, we are seeking to raise the industry’s share of renewable energy and power plants to resolve this issue more quickly,” Atabak said.