Baku, Azerbaijan, Aug. 23
By Umid Niayesh - Trend:
Iran exported $1 billion worth of electricity during the last fiscal year (ended on March 21), the country's energy minister, Hamid Chitchian said, ISNA news agency reported Aug. 23.
During the last fiscal year, Iran decreased electricity export by 14 percent to a 9.95 billion kWh (a unit for measuring energy), while its electricity import increased by 2 percent to 3.769 billion kWh.
Chitchian further said that Iran's energy ministry has exported $2.5 billion worth of technical-engineering service in the last fiscal year as well as $87 million worth of equipments related to power industry.
Earlier Bahram Nezamolmaleki, an official with the energy ministry said that Iranian companies are implementing various water and electricity sector projects, worth $6.5 billion around the world.
Early in March, Chitchian said 236 projects, worth over $1.6 billion, have been implemented in 27 countries so far. Moreover, 90 other projects, worth over $2.4 billion, are being negotiated, he added.
Chitchian also commented on differences between energy and oil ministries over electricity export, saying the government will make decision on the issue in coming days.
"The government should make decision that exporting gas or electricity can bring more benefits to the country."
Alireza Kameli, the managing director of the National Iranian Gas Exports Company (NIGEC) earlier said that negotiations were held with several Turkish companies, resulting in preliminary agreements on electricity export from Iran to Turkey.
The Turkish companies currently in negotiations with the NIGEC are well-established companies, which run several power plants in Turkey, he said, adding one of the objectives pursued from electricity exports is to "diversify gas exports, by converting it to electricity."
Meanwhile the energy ministry believes that the oil ministry, or any of its subsidiaries [including NIGEC], should coordinate with it on the matter since any such project can be implemented only through utilizing the capacity of the power grid.
Iran is currently trading electricity with Armenia, Pakistan, Turkmenistan, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Iraq and Afghanistan.
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