Iranian and Russian companies are to kick off construction works for a jointly-financed power plant project in southern Iran this week, according to the Iranian Energy Minister Reza Ardakanian after a visit to Russia.
Ardakanian said that works on Sirik power plant, a major electricity station on the Persian Gulf coast, would start on June 10 in a ceremony attended by Iranian and Russian officials in the port city of Sirik.
That comes more than three months after the Russian government issued banking guarantees for a loan of $1.2 billion that will be used for construction of the project.
The Iranian minister described the power plant as a key component of Iran’s plans to develop infrastructure at the southeastern coasts of the Persian Gulf.
He said the project will be able to use mazut as its fuel, allowing Iran to save some 3 billion cubic meters of natural gas each year.
The Sirik Power Plant is planned to be constructed in four units with a total electricity generation capacity of 1.4 gigawatts.
Russia’s Power Machines, a major company focused on thermal power plant construction, has been awarded to build the plant in the next five years through partnerships with local Iranian energy and construction firms.