Iran’s synchronizes first manufacturing sector power plant

Iran's first manufacturing sector power plant has started supplying electricity to the country's power grid amid attempts by the government to encourage industries to rely on their own electricity supplies rather than facing shortages that are caused by rising demand for power in the country's household and business sectors.

The 336 megawatts (MW) Qods power plant in the central city of Semnan was connected to Iran's power grid on Sunday, according to a report by the semi-official Fars news agency.

The power plant is the first in a series of electricity stations launched by large Iranian manufacturing companies as part of a government plan to reach a target of 10,000 MW of generation capacity in the sector.

Iranian steel, cement and petrochemicals producers normally face power cuts in the summers, when cooling demand for electricity rises in the country, as well as in the winters, when power plants reduce their output because of natural gas shortages.

The Iranian government has committed to continued supply of energy feedstock, including natural gas or fuels, to power plants launched by industrial manufacturers while it has also promised to supply electricity from the national grid to those manufacturers without any plans for power cuts throughout the entire year.

The report by Fars said the Qods power plant, which was inaugurated earlier this year, had been constructed within a global record of only six months.

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