Solar Rooftops Will Augment Income of Deprived Families

EghtesadOnline: A total of 2,000 rooftop photovoltaic panels, each with a capacity of 5 kilowatts, will be set up for underprivileged families in North Khorasan Province by the end of the next fiscal (March 2021), managing director of North Khorasan Electric Distribution Company said.

News ID: ۷۸۵۳۵۲

04 February 2020

“In addition to expanding clean energy, the solar panels will generate income for the deprived families,” Bargh News quoted Alireza Sabouri as saying.

Iran is overly dependent on thermal power and renewables account for only 900 megawatts of the total annual output of 82,000 MW, Financial Tribune reported.

Expanding solar farms and rooftop photovoltaic power stations will help reduce consumption of fossil fuels and curb environmental pollutants.

According to Sabouri, the Energy Ministry has guaranteed the purchase of electricity generated by all renewable sources for 20 years.

“Each 5kW installation costs between $2,600 to $3,000, a major part of which will come in the form of loans to be repaid in installments within five years,” he added.

The ministry has plans to set up 18,000 more 5KW solar installations in other provinces with an investment of $52 million. It is encouraging both companies and households to generate their own solar power with a minimum investment.

Source of Income

Each photovoltaic panel with one kilowatt capacity can generate 200 kW of power in 30 days. The state-owned Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Organization, aka Satba, buys each kilowatt of electricity for 8 cents, meaning households selling one kilowatt can earn $16 per month. A 5kW installation makes a minimum of 75$ per month.

With more than 300 sunny days in a year, Iran has huge potential to expand solar farms and attract investments.

Private companies have invested over $1 billion in the gradually expanding renewable sector, mainly solar and wind. Due to government funding constraints, private firms are expected to play a bigger role in promoting clean energy if the purchasing prices are reasonable.

The government, with the help of the private companies, reportedly has plans to raise the current share of renewables to 4,000 MW by 2022.

According to Energy Ministry data, green energy figures show 44% is from solar, 40% wind power, 13% small hydroelectric plants, 2% geothermal and 1% biomass.

Development of renewables is expanding globally, according to the International Energy Agency. Renewables will present the largest single source of electricity production growth over the next five years by rising over 26% by 2022 from 22% in 2017-- a remarkable shift in a limited period.

The IEA estimates that by 2022, the amount of global electricity generation coming from renewables will be higher than today’s combined electricity demand of China, India and Brazil.

Scientists claim that the potential and the technology is there to reach close to 100% reliance on renewable energy by 2050 if major policy changes are made worldwide.