Iran reported to see first geothermal plant to come online in 2013
Nomads in the Sabalan mountains in Ardebil province, Iran (source: flickr/ ninara, creative commons)
Alexander Richter
9 May 2012
News from Iran report that the country is likely to see its first geothermal power plant to come online in 2013 at Meshkin Shahr in Adebil province.
Reported from Iran, the Managing director of the Renewable Energy Organization of Iran (REOI) has announced that the country expects to commission its first geothermal power plant in 2013.
Attention: a similar article appeared about the same plant in 2009 … so if anyone could confirm if this is happening that would be great.
“Yousef Armodeli noted on Tuesday that installing the 5-megawatt (MW) power plant, which is a pilot plant and the first of its kind in the Middle East, will soon be carried out and its power generation capacity will hit 50 MW after more turbines are installed.
“Outside Iran, such [pilot] projects are implemented as a joint project by a number of countries, but in Iran, due to [the country’s] high potentials in renewable energies and skilled experts this is done indigenously,” he added.
The official stated that the power plant which is located near the city of Meshkin-Shahr in northwest Iran will become fully operational during the next Iranian calendar year (to start March 21, 2013).
He said the REOI has so far given the go-ahead for the production of 12,000 MW of energy from renewable sources across Iran.
The official added that the Iranian private sector is supposed to produce 500 MW of renewable energy by the end of the Fifth Economic Development Plan (2015).
Last May, Armodeli announced that the REOI is planning to increase the private sector’s investment in the field to build 5,000 MW of renewable energy power plants.
The Islamic Republic has taken great strides in generating energy from renewable sources, especially wind power.”
Source: PressTV Iran
