Mohammad Sadeghzadeh made the remarks on Wednesday while visiting the solar power stations in Bardsir in the southern province of Kerman.
He said 3,000 rooftop PVs will be added to the already existing 2,000 ones, totaling 5,000 units by the end of this year.
He said that the production of renewable energy was 250 megawatts two years ago, while the figure increased to 500 megawatts last year.
The deputy energy minister added that the figure will reach 1,000 megawatts by the end of this year.
Renewable ventures are gaining popularity in the country; with more than 300 sunny days throughout the year, Iran has huge potential to expand solar energy infrastructure and attract foreign investments.
The study of the figures in this sector shows that 42% of Iran’s renewable plants is from solar power, 41% wind power, 13% small hydroelectric, 2% heat recovery and 2% biomass.
The country meets more than 80% of its electricity demand from thermal power plants that run on fossil fuels. Of the total 80,000 MW production capacity, only a meager amount of 670 MW goes to renewables.
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