Tehran, Ashgabat seek to broaden regional electricity cooperation
Iran and Turkmenistan have discussed extending their electricity import agreement, increasing power exchanges and developing transmission lines as Tehran seeks to expand regional energy cooperation, the head of Iran's Power Generation, Distribution and Transmission Company (Tavanir) said on Friday.
The talks took place during an Iranian delegation's visit to Turkmenistan, where President Masoud Pezeshkian attended a summit of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), Mohammad Allahdad said, according to the Energy Ministry's news service Paven.
The Iranian delegation, led by Transport and Urban Development Minister Farzaneh Sadeq and including the heads of the country's electricity and gas companies, met Turkmen Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov to discuss bilateral energy cooperation, Allahdad said.
The main issues included extending the electricity import contract with Turkmenistan, increasing power exchanges, developing the third and fourth electricity interconnection lines, and exploring the possibility of transmitting electricity through Turkmenistan to third countries.
The two sides reached preliminary agreements to continue examining the proposals, Allahdad said, adding that technical teams would assess their technical, economic and operational aspects.
He said the cooperation could create opportunities to increase electricity exchange capacity and strengthen regional energy ties, subject to the findings of expert assessments and the fulfillment of implementation requirements.
Iran has also opened the way for private companies to import electricity from neighboring countries to meet their energy needs.
Coordination has been completed for electricity imports from Iran's northern neighbors. Under existing contracts, Iran imports about 320 megawatts from Turkmenistan, equivalent to roughly 2 billion kilowatt-hours a year, and around 300 to 350 megawatts from Armenia, power industry spokesman Mostafa Rajabi Mashhadi said in September.
He described electricity imports as an important step toward meeting the country's energy needs.
Iran has also been negotiating with Turkey to secure electricity imports for its petrochemical industry after power plants supplying the sector were damaged during the 40-day war that began in late February.
The push to secure additional electricity supplies comes as Iran, which has faced energy shortages under decades of Western sanctions, seeks to address disruptions worsened by the conflict.