European countries want to make Iran a Mideast hub for renewable energy, at a time when relaxing international sanctions on the country also will see the release of more Iranian crude oil onto the global market.
Iran’s official English news service, PressTV, reported that Denmark is the latest country to join what could become a clean energy push in line with sanctions coming off this year under an international deal to curb the country’s ability to build a nuclear weapon.
Iranian Energy Minister Hamid Chitchian told the news service that Denmark’s plan is to have Iran serve as a wind energy hub for the entire region.
“The Danes have offered investment for the construction of a wind-turbine manufacturing factory in Iran so that they can export their products via our country to the region,” the Iranian minister said after meeting with Danish officials earlier this month.
Chitchian said the meeting also was used to discuss electricity and water utility development in the country, along with how cooperation on renewable energy will proceed with European partners.
The Renewable Energy Organization of Iran said in June that it would buy “dozens” of wind turbines, according to PressTV. It says more than 200 wind turbines currently operate in the northern part of the country, generating 300 million kilowatt-hours of electricity in 2015.
New wind turbine development is being planned to begin next in the southeastern part of the country.
The news service calls Iran is the “biggest generator of electricity in the Middle East,” producing 277 billion kilowatt hours of power last year.
Iran generates electricity primarily from hydroelectric and natural gas power plants, while noting that “it plugged its first nuclear power plant into the national grid in September 2011.”
On Tuesday, many U.S. news outlets that cover the renewable energy business were circulating a report from Cleantechnica.com on the growing interest in Iran’s renewable energy sector.
It said the Iranian news agency Mehr reported last year that a German company is planning to build 1.25 gigawatts of solar energy capacity in the country. The Iranian energy minister also announced last year that Iran was looking at building 5 gigawatts of solar in wind by 2018.
