After power outages in some industrial units due to electricity shortages in Iran and unprecedented consumption records in the summer heat, the head of the Tehran Chamber of Commerce has now reported power cuts to pharmaceutical factories.
According to ILNA news agency, Mahmoud Najafi-Arab announced on Sunday, July 14, that the pharmaceutical industry, like other industries in the country, has been affected by electricity imbalances and spends the hot days of the year with power outages.
The head of the Tehran Chamber of Commerce also pointed to the currency supply problems of pharmaceutical companies, stating that these companies are even facing challenges in securing rials and cannot obtain the financial resources needed to provide working capital.
He mentioned that under such conditions, production units in this industry experience power outages for two days a week.
Earlier, the Tehran Electricity Distribution Company had announced that with the unprecedented increase in electricity consumption, on Wednesday, July 10, the power of 65 high-consumption administrative subscribers in Tehran was cut off due to their refusal to reduce electricity consumption.
According to the company’s statement, these offices did not adhere to the government decree requiring at least a 30% reduction in electricity consumption during working hours and 60% during non-working hours, leading to the power cut.
However, with the continued imbalance between electricity production and consumption in Iran and the daily increase in consumption, Mostafa Rajabi Mashhadi, the CEO of Tavanir, the national electricity provider, again reported the possibility of power outages in Tehran.
This comes as some areas in Tehran experienced an unprecedented five-hour power outage on Thursday, July 11.
The increase in temperature and record-breaking electricity consumption have also led to the closure of several provinces.
Media outlets announced, “To prevent widespread blackouts and scheduled power cuts, Thursday has been declared a holiday in 15 provinces to manage the grid by reducing electricity consumption in offices and avoid blackouts.”
At the end of last week, the average temperature in the country increased by about two degrees compared to the same period last year.
According to the Ministry of Energy, the country’s electricity consumption this week increased by about 6,000 megawatts compared to the previous week and was 8% higher than last year’s peak consumption.
On Friday, July 12, Mostafa Rajabi Mashhadi announced that the total consumption was 77,514 megawatts, stating that “this number has not been recorded before, and this year we have exceeded last year’s peak consumption for the fifth time.”
According to the CEO of Tavanir, for every one degree increase in temperature in the country, about 1,800 megawatts is added to the electricity consumption, which is due to air conditioners and cooling devices.
Due to repeated delays in the development of power plants and extensive electricity wastage in the aging grid, Iran faces a deficit of 14,000 megawatts of electricity during the hot seasons, and the electricity deficit increases each year.
The Iranian government had targeted the launch of more than 6,000 megawatts of new power plants last year, but only 2,000 megawatts were realized.
The Minister of Energy had previously announced that the “most important” step for the government to address the electricity deficit is to change office hours and control the electricity consumption of office cooling systems.
Reza Riahi, Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of power generation companies, stated that if the imbalance in the electricity grid continues in this way, in the next 10 years, 33% of the consumption needs, or in fact, one-third of the country’s electricity needs, will not be met.
