Veep calls for energy conservation, cites private sector, nuclear power as key measures
Iran's First Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref called for stronger energy consumption management to help sustain the country's production, saying the government was prepared to delegate the necessary authority to ministers to implement conservation measures.
Speaking at a meeting of Iran's Supreme Energy Council on Wednesday, Aref said managing energy demand was essential to ensuring adequate supplies for the industrial, agricultural and residential sectors, according to Shana News Agency.
"Energy consumption management helps sustain the country's production, therefore decisions on the issue must be made with a comprehensive approach and unified policy," Aref said.
"The government is ready to delegate whatever authority is necessary to ministers to advance energy consumption management programs."
He said expanding private sector participation in energy supply, continued government support for nuclear energy development and reducing energy consumption through the expansion of greenhouse farming were among the key measures to increase production and improve energy efficiency.
Iran is facing electricity shortages, a situation exacerbated by peak summer demand and the ongoing US war, which began in late February and has paused only for several weeks under a ceasefire agreed on April 8. A US-Israeli coalition launched attacks on the country on Feb. 28, particularly targeting civilians and infrastructure.
Power imports
The country imports about 500 MW of electricity annually from Turkmenistan and Armenia. According to the Energy Ministry, the imports help maintain the stability of electricity supply and reduce domestic fuel consumption.
Tehran also plans to import 450 megawatts (MW) of electricity from Turkey to supply petrochemical companies as part of efforts to strengthen power supplies for large industries.
Deputy Energy Minister Mostafa Rajabi Mashhadi, who accompanied Roads Minister Farzaneh Sadeq during a visit to Turkmenistan on Tuesday, held talks with Turkmen Energy Minister Annageldi Saparov on expanding bilateral cooperation in the electricity sector.
The two sides discussed increasing electricity imports from Turkmenistan, Iran's participation in power plant maintenance, construction of new transmission lines to boost electricity transit and the reliability of cross-border exchanges, as well as expanding technical and engineering services and the supply of electrical equipment needed by the sector.
They also stressed the need to continue and strengthen bilateral cooperation in the electricity sector and discussed broader efforts to enhance transmission infrastructure and utilize the two countries' shared capacities.
Power generation restored
Meanwhile, Iran Power Plant Repairs Company has restored more than 3,500 MW of generation capacity to the national grid by completing 38 specialized turbine rotor and generator projects, Chief Executive Mohammad Bagher Lotfi said.
Lotfi said ensuring continuous power generation and grid stability remained the company's main priority.
He said the company's International Rotating Equipment Balancing Center provides services covering more than 3,507 MW of capacity, helping prepare power plants for peak electricity demand.
The company has also delivered engineering services for nearly 20,000 MW of generating capacity under Iran's national power plant maintenance and readiness program, equivalent to 21% of the total work carried out under the initiative, he said.
According to the Energy Ministry, Iran's installed power generation capacity has exceeded 100,000 MW.