Iran's Minister of Energy Abbas Aliabadi and Armenia's Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure Davit Khudatyan discussed issues of cooperation, Mehr reports.
The parties emphasized the need to accelerate the implementation and completion of the 12-year project for the construction of the third power transmission line, and also decided to continue cooperation to accelerate the implementation of the project.
During the meeting, the Minister of Energy of Iran raised the issue of the construction of the "Meghri" hydroelectric power station, and the Armenian side, referring to the agreements reached earlier, announced its readiness to cooperate in the construction of this power station. It was also announced that the Omani company expressed its willingness to finance and implement the construction project of "Meghri" power plant.
During the meeting, the issue of creating Iran-Armenia-Georgia-Russia electricity corridors was also discussed. Tehran has announced its readiness for the construction of the power transmission line between Armenia and Georgia to be carried out by Iranian companies.
The Minister of Energy of Iran also supported the idea of holding a meeting of the working group on the pollution of the Araks River.
Backstage at the meeting, the energy minister, noting that Iran and Armenia are two neighboring and brotherly countries with a long history of relations and cooperation, referred to the development of bilateral cooperation between the countries and said: "Both countries have always sought to develop these relations. The purpose of the visit of the Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructures of Armenia is to follow up on some unfinished projects and to complete them, as well as to start new joint projects. I think that this visit can be very important and effective in this regard. One of the most important projects of interest to us is the connection of the Iranian power grid with the northern countries, and Armenia is one of the main links of this route. Along with Armenia, other countries are also involved in this program, and we are considering the possibility of commissioning the project of connecting Iran, Armenia, Georgia and Russia."
Speaking about the other goals of the joint meeting of the two countries, the Minister of Energy noted. "Another important issue is the development of energy cooperation. Iran has been exporting gas to Armenia for many years, and in return receives electricity. The development of this cooperation has been on the agenda for a long time, and for this it is necessary to build a new power transmission line.
This project is currently underway. During the Armenian minister's visit, negotiations were held on accelerating the process of its implementation, so that it could be completed in a shorter period of time. Another topic of discussion was the joint project on the Araks River. This river has adequate potential for hydropower, and there is a possibility to build a power plant with a capacity of about 200 megawatts. The studies of this project have already been completely completed, and now it is necessary to define the phases of its financing and implementation.
Energy cooperation between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Republic of Armenia is at a very high level. In the field of energy, the exchange of gas and electricity between the two countries has been carried out for many years, and the Republic of Armenia has the opportunity to export electricity to Iran and receive gas in return throughout the year.
This issue was also discussed during the meeting. In addition, the possibilities of developing bilateral cooperation and connecting the energy infrastructures of the two countries were considered. One of the most important joint projects is the 400 kV power transmission line, which is currently under construction. Of course, during the implementation of this project, there are some problems and obstacles that have been discussed. We hope that this project will be put into operation by the end of the year," the Iranian minister said.
