Armenia can quadruple electricity exports to Iran, deputy minister says
Armenia can increase electricity shipments to neighboring Iran four times, deputy energy and natural resources minister Areg Galstyan told a September 23 public debate on the future of the country’s power grid.
According to him, in view of recent processes around the Iranian nuclear program and the removal of Western sanctions from Iran, good opportunities, including increase of exports to Iran are opening up for Armenia.
He said the current annual exports of electricity- 1.8 billion KWh- can be increased to 6.9 billion KWh.
Armenia and Iran are building now the third high-voltage electricity transmission line which is planned to be completed until 2018.
The deputy minister spoke also about the Meghri hydroelectric power station on the Armenian-Iranian border, saying this project is mutually beneficial with all the arrangements being achieved and the only obstacle to kicking it off is absence of stable funding for the project, which the Iranian side has assumed.
The Meghri power plant is supposed to be the most powerful hydroelectric power stations in the South Caucasus. From the Armenian side the hydroelectric power station will be located in Meghri, and from the Iranian side – in Karachilar.
The construction of the hydroelectric power stations in Meghri and Karachilar will proceed simultaneously, allowing to scale back expenses by 10-15%.
Each of the stations will generate yearly 793 mln kilowatt-hour of electricity. The designed capacity of Meghri hydroelectric power station is 130 megawatt.
The cost of the construction of Meghri hydroelectric power station is estimated at $323 mln, to be funded by an Iranian investment company.
The generated energy will be shipped to Iran via a 230 KW transmission line now under construction.
After the facility is built it will be operated for 15 years by the Iranian Farat-Sepasat company.
The electricity will be supplied to Iran to pay off the Iranian investment. After 15 years of operation, the hydropower will become the property of Armenia. ---0----