Solar project for 12,000 schools kicks off amid renewables push
The operational work to equip 12,000 schools across the country with solar power systems began on Tuesday, state news agency Tasnim reported.
The launch coincided with the signing of a memorandum of understanding between Iran's Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Organization (SATBA) and the Organization for Development, Renovation and Equipping Schools.
Under the first phase of the plan, 12,000 public schools will each be fitted with a 5-kilowatt grid-connected solar system.
The initiative is designed both to boost distributed power generation and to create an educational opportunity for students to learn about the design, construction, and operation of solar plants – a factor that could help shape their vocational skills and future careers, according to the report.
Revenue from electricity generated by the school-based solar plants could also help strengthen educational infrastructure.
SATBA will provide main solar system components – including panels, inverters, and mounting structures – to the school renovation and development organization.
Mohsen Tarztalab, head of SATBA, said on Tuesday that all necessary equipment for the 60-megawatt solar project across these schools has been secured, and shipments to provinces will begin next week.
The launch ceremony for the installation of solar power plants at 12,000 schools was held at Shahid Chamran Technical School in Tehran, with deputy ministers of energy and education in attendance, according to the Mehr news agency.
The deputy energy minister added that of the 100,000 public schools nationwide, 60 to 70 percent have the potential to host solar panels. "This movement has begun, and we are fully prepared – if infrastructure is provided – to continue this path toward maximum equipping of schools," he said.
Tarztalab has recently said the ministry was pursuing the consolidation of clean energy projects to raise Iran's renewable energy capacity to around 7,000 megawatts by late June, with the aim of reducing fossil fuel consumption, particularly natural gas and diesel.
The expansion comes as President Masoud Pezeshkian's government aims to install 30,000 MW of renewable energy capacity over the next two years amid an expected power shortfall this year.
According to the ministry, electricity demand is expected to rise "by more than 5% this year," after Iran's peak electricity consumption hovered around 79,000 megawatts last summer.