The United Nations is ready to help Tehran strengthen energy ties with neighboring states, especially Afghanistan, a UN official said on Monday.
“Iran can play a key role in resolving Afghanistan’s energy issues,” Hideo Ikebe, head of Tehran Liaison Office of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, said in Tehran on Sunday.
According to Iran’s Financial Tribune, Ikebe made the statement in a meeting with Farhad Yazdandoust, head of the Energy Ministry’s Export Promotion Department.
Ikebe thanked Iran for its help to the war-ravaged neighbor in rebuilding its energy infrastructure. “UNAMA is ready to expand collaboration with Iran’s Energy Ministry,” he said.
A year ago, the Iranian government said it was working to turn Iran into a regional hub in power generation and supply.
At the time IRNA reported Iran was considering increasing the export of electricity to Afghanistan and Pakistan in an effort to become a regional hub in power generation and supply.
“Given the fact that neighbouring countries, especially Afghanistan and Pakistan, need electricity, necessary measures should be adopted to link Iran’s power grid to theirs,” Davoud Manzour, deputy executive director of Iran Power Generation, Distribution and Transmission Company, said.
Manzour said, the country is expected to turn into a regional hub in power generation and supply.
According to IRNA, in January last year Iran already exported nearly 190 megawatt-hours of electricity to Afghanistan.
Iran is the largest exporter and importer of electricity in the Middle East and currently exports power to Pakistan, Turkey, Iraq and Afghanistan, according to Iran’s Financial Tribune newspaper.
In addition, Iran exports electricity to Armenia and Azerbaijan in winter and imports it when domestic demand soars in summer, under swap deals.
