BAKU, Azerbaijan, Oct. 31
By Elnur Baghishov – Trend:
Iran has a great potential to generate electricity through solar panels, the Spokesman for Iranian Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Organization Jafar Mohammadnejad said, Trend reports citing Ministry of Energy of Iran.
The spokesman noted that Germany has installed solar panels that can generate about 50,000 megawatts of electricity. However, the volume of sunlight in Iran is twice as much as in Germany.
"If Iran builds a solar or wind power plant instead of building a 1,000-megawatt power plant with fossil fuel, it could actually save 1.5 billion cubic meters of natural gas and 2.8 million cubic meters of water a year. It also prevents the release of 3.7 million tons of carbon dioxide into the environment per year," he added.
Mohammadnejad also said that 1 solar panel power plant can be installed in 6 months, while the construction of a fossil fuel power plant will take 1.5 years.
According to the official, Iran needs $600,000-$650,000 for the construction of a 1-megawatt solar panel power plant and $700,000-$750,000 for the construction of a 1-megawatt wind power plant.
"It was also decided that the expenditures on the construction of renewable energy power plants should be provided at the expense of fossil fuel savings. The Iranian Oil Ministry has also made a commitment in this direction," he said.
Mohammadnejad emphasized that research shows that it is possible to build wind power plants in Iran that can generate 30,000-40,000 megawatts of electricity. However, this potential has not been adequately addressed.
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