Iran to start power exports to Syria, Lebanon next week
An Iranian energy official says the Islamic Republic will start exporting 50 megawatts (MW) of electricity to Lebanon and Syria as of next week.
Iran is fully prepared to export electricity to Lebanon and Syria and power transfer to these countries will officially start as of next week, Abdolhamid Farzam, Iran Energy Ministry’s official in charge of foreign exchanges said on Sunday.
According to Farzam, electricity export to Lebanon and Syria is taking place as part of an agreement reached between energy ministers of Iran, Iraq, Syria and Lebanon in February.
Power transfer to Lebanon and Syria will be carried out in two phases, 50 MW in the first phase and 200 MW in the second phase, Farzam added.
Earlier in February, Iran's Energy Minister Majid Namjou said Iran was planning to export electricity to Syria and Lebanon through Iraq’s power grid.
Namjou said Iran is capable of exporting 1,000 MW of power to Iraq, adding that Syria had also demanded 500 MW of electricity from Iran.
“Iran is also able to export 50-100 MW of electricity to Lebanon through Syria,” Namjou said.
Iran is currently exchanging electricity with Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Iraq, Pakistan, Nakhichevan, Turkey and Turkmenistan.
Iran's total annual power generation capacity stands at 63,403 MW while the total length of the power grid exceeds 780,000 km.
According to the Iranian Energy Ministry statistics, the country will be exporting up to USD 1 billion worth of electricity by March 2012.
Iran seeks to become a major regional exporter of electricity and has attracted more than USD 1.1 billion in investments to build three new power plants.