SATBA Inks 15-Year Power Purchase Deal with Iran’s Only Biogas Power Plant

Iran's Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Organization (SATBA) has signed a deal with the Water and Wastewater Department of Tehran Province to purchase the electricity generated by the country’s only biogas power plant which is run by the mentioned department. According to the Deputy Head of Water and Wastewater Department of Tehran Province, Abbasali Mesrzadeh, based on the deal SATBA is going to purchase about 500 billion kilowatt-hours (Kwh) of electricity over a 15-year period at a base price of IRR 10,500 (~US$0.04), the portal of the Energy Ministry, PAVEN reported.

As reported, the mentioned deal has been signed following a government directive that obliges the Energy Ministry to buy the electricity produced by renewable power plants. The mentioned plant, which is one of the largest wastewater biogas plants in the world, has a nominal annual electricity generation capacity of 44 gigawatts as well as 140 terajoules of thermal energy, which is equivalent to the power supply of a six-acre residential town, according to Mesrzadeh. The output of this power plant is going to save the country 100,000 barrels of crude oil (400,000 cubic meters of gas) per year, the official said.

This power plant is also going to reduce the annual greenhouse gas emissions by about 150,000 tons which is equivalent to the carbon dioxide absorption of 2,000 hectares of jungles. Biogas is the mixture of gases produced by the breakdown of organic matter in the absence of oxygen (anaerobically), primarily consisting of methane and carbon dioxide. Biogas can be produced from raw materials such as agricultural waste, manure, municipal waste, plant material, sewage, green waste or food waste, and it is a renewable energy source.

According to PAVEN, currently, the power generation capacity of renewable power plants across the country has reached nearly 800 megawatts and the volume of private investment in this sector has exceeded IRR 124 trillion (~US$593.1 million). The bulk of electricity generation from renewables, around 85%, comes from solar and wind plants, while biomass and other types of plants account for over 1% of the total output. Renewables, including hydropower, account for nearly 7% of the country’s total energy generation, versus natural gas’ over 90% share. - Tehran Times