TEHRAN - Iran’s Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Organization (SATBA) has launched the installation of over 5,000 megawatts of solar power capacity at more than 850 sites across the country, as part of its push to expand renewable energy and improve electricity efficiency, the head of the organization said on Saturday.

Mohsen Tarztalab, who also serves as deputy energy minister, said the projects currently under development are expected to boost the country's installed renewable capacity to at least 7,000 megawatts in the near future.

According to a statement from SATBA, Tarztalab noted that dozens of new renewable power plants will come online weekly, starting from late August. “Government-run solar projects currently under construction will gradually be connected to the grid,” he said.

During a trip to South Khorasan Province, Tarztalab inaugurated 16 megawatts of new solar capacity across three sites: two 3-megawatt plants in Khusf County and a 10-megawatt facility in Sarbisheh.

These solar farms were financed by private investors under contracts signed with SATBA, including frameworks based on Iran’s green energy trading board and Article 12 of the law on removing barriers to production. Built on a combined area of over 25 hectares, the total investment was around 45 trillion rials (approximately $9.0 million at the unofficial exchange rate of 500,000 rials per dollar).

The solar plants are projected to generate 31 million kilowatt-hours of electricity annually—enough to save 8.4 million cubic meters of natural gas, 6,800 cubic meters of water, and cut carbon dioxide emissions by 17,000 tons per year. The energy produced is also equivalent to saving 53,000 barrels of crude oil.

Tarztalab said work has also started on an additional 81 megawatts of solar capacity in three other counties across South Khorasan, with plans to add a total of 100 megawatts to the province’s renewable portfolio by November and December. The combined value of the new and upcoming projects is estimated at 250 trillion rials (around $50 million).

The announcement marks a significant step in Iran’s efforts to diversify its energy mix and reduce reliance on fossil fuels amid domestic electricity shortages and environmental pressures.

EF/MA