“The scheme, approved by the government's Economic Council, will help reduce the load on the national grid during peak hours by at least 1,600 megawatts,” Mostafa Rajabi Mashhadi was quoted as saying by IRNA.
The plan will also save 2 billion cubic meters of natural gas (that will be burnt if thermal power plants generate 1,600 MW of power), Financial Tribune quoted him as saying.
There are close to 5 million ACs in Iran which have long outlived their usefulness, but those in southern regions have been given priority.
Generating 1,600 MW of power means the ministry should invest almost $1.5 billion to construct a 2,000 MW power station plus transmission lines.
The official noted that the project has nothing to do with the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement under which Iran has pledged to decrease its emissions by 4% by 2030.
“ACs account for 65% of total power load in Khuzestan and Hormozgan provinces where the cooling systems are on for 18 hours a day for nine months.”
Average mercury in southern provinces hovers around 50°C between May and September.
Pay 35% Less
According to the official, the plan will reduce electricity bills by at least 35%.
Those who get the new device will be obliged to pay 35% of the price in installments over 12 months, he said, without providing details.
According to analysis by the International Energy Agency that stresses urgent need for policy action to improve cooling efficiency, the growing use of air conditioners in homes and offices around the world will be one of the top drivers of global electricity demand in the next three decades.
Global energy demand from air conditioners is expected to triple by 2050, requiring new electricity capacity equal to the combined electricity capacity of the United States, the EU and Japan today.
The global stock of air conditioners in buildings will grow to 5.6 billion by 2050, up from 1.6 billion today – which amounts to 10 new ACs sold every second for the next 30 years, according to the report.
Using air conditioners and electric fans to stay cool already accounts for about a fifth of the total electricity used in buildings around the world – or 10% of all global electricity consumption.
But as incomes and living standards improve in many developing countries, the growth in AC demand in hotter regions is set to soar.
AC use is expected to be the second-largest source of global electricity demand growth after the industrial sector and the strongest driver for buildings by 2050.