Iran to Expand Off-Grid Solar to All Govt. Buildings

The Iranian government is seeking to make it mandatory for all of its departments to use off-grid solar systems to meet their electricity demand.

Government spokeswoman Fatemeh Mohajerani said on Sunday that all government buildings in Iran will be gradually disconnected from the country’s electrical grid to increase power supplies to households and industries.

Mohajerani said on her X account that government departments will soon be able to meet their electricity demand from solar panels. Iran’s Energy Minister Abbas Aliabadi also said that all government buildings will soon be equipped with solar panels to allow them to become off-grid.

Aliabadi told a Cabinet meeting that Iran will open some 11.5 gigawatts (GW) of solar power plants before the end of the calendar year to late March 2026. The announcements are the latest to come from Iran’s ambitious plan to increase its renewables capacity by 25 times in three years.

Authorities say they have already approved applications by domestic and foreign investors for building 35 GW of new renewable power plants. Recent figures released by Iran’s state electricity company show that renewables are currently responsible for only 1.8% of the country’s total power generation capacity of 94.5 GW.

Iran announced in January that its banking system will offer up to US$5 billion worth of easy loans to builders of renewable power plants in the next four years, using finances made available by the country’s sovereign wealth fund. The campaign to expand renewables in Iran is part of efforts by the government to offset electricity production issues caused by fuel shortages in the country's thermal power plants. - Press TV