Initial phase of Iran’s first geothermal power plant comes online
Iran has connected the first 5 megawatts (MW) of its Meshgin Shahr geothermal power plant in Ardabil Province to the national electricity grid, Energy Minister Abbas Aliabadi said on Thursday, marking the first phase of the country's first geothermal power project.
The pilot project, built with an investment of 10 million euros, has been developed over a geothermal reservoir with an estimated generation capacity of about 250 MW, Aliabadi said, according to IRNA.
"The implementation of this project has enabled the country to acquire the expertise needed to explore, design, construct and operate geothermal resources," he
said.
Aliabadi said several wells, each about 3,000 meters deep, had been drilled to explore and develop the geothermal resource, with a combined generation capacity of 30 MW.
"Five megawatts of that capacity have been brought online in the first phase," he said.
He said the project was intended to expand the use of geothermal energy as a clean and sustainable power source while supporting economic development in the region by attracting tourism.
"In the next stages of the project, we will seek to expand the capacity of the Meshgin Shahr power plant and its existing wells, then develop the entire explored reservoir in the region and build geothermal power plants in other parts of the country," Aliabadi said.
He said the project's objectives included expanding the use of geothermal renewable energy for electricity generation, acquiring technology and expertise in geothermal resource development, localizing technical knowledge for the sustainable operation of geothermal reservoirs, and reducing dependence on fossil fuels.
The geothermal power plant is under construction about 25 kilometers (16 miles) south of the city of Meshgin
Shahr.