- The 85 GW nominal capacity installed in Iran -until the end of 2020- is divided between the public and private sector by 44% and 56%, respectively. So, two decades after restructuring of Iran’s power industry, the private sector now accounts for about 60% of electricity generation.
- In 2020, public and private thermal power plants had nearly identical efficiency rates of 36.8% and 36.7%, respectively, but major industries’ power plants had a lower rate of 30.5%
- From 2010 to 2013, the transfer of ownership was mostly based on government debt to the private sector, which led to the formation of a flawed stakeholder structure that lacked expertise in this area.
- Of the total cash resources derived from ownership transfers, only 1% was left for the industry in order to finance the investments. This was due to the immediate need of the government for cash in order to fund budget deficits and other expenses.
- During 18 years (including the last 16 years, current year, and 2023), the non-governmental sector has invested $6.5B in the construction of 27 GW of new nominal capacity in thermal power plants.
- A majority (85%) of the funds were funded by loans from the NDF and the Oil Stabilization Fund. In contrast, private resources (most of which were bank loans) accounted for only 15% of total financing resources.
- Given that there is no modification in the wholesale price of electricity, an interesting contract for investment in the power industry (known as the Energy Conversion Agreement or ECA) has been developed, which is also used as a guarantee for financing power plants. A historical survey of the ECA contract in a private power plant found that the government only pays a minor portion (18%) of the electricity price, with the majority (82%) going to government debts to the private sector.
