Foreign investors continue to flock to the budding renewable energy market in Iran following a thaw in international relations with the Middle East country.

The British Photovoltaic Association (BPVA) recently signed an agreement with the Renewable Energy Organization of Iran (SUNA) for the development of 1 GW of solar PV capacity in the Middle Eastern country. The agreement will also see the development of a 500 MW solar module manufacturing facility in Iran.

The agreement is the latest in a list of several similar deals signed with foreign governments and companies for the development of large-scale renewable energy projects in Iran.

The Iranian government plans to install 5 GW of renewable capacity by 2020. The implementation of 500 MW of wind energy capacity and 100 MW in biomass projects has already started.

Last month, German company Planet in Green announced that it has been chosen by the Iranian government to set up a 100 MW solar project. The company has signed 20-year power purchase agreement with the Iranian renewable energy organization.

Last year, an unnamed German company was reported to have struck a deal with the Iranian government to set up 1.25 GW of solar capacity.

Two Italian companies also announced plans to set up 100 MW of solar projects, each with an installed capacity of 10 MW. The entire capacity of 1 GW will be installed over a period of 9-10 years. The total investment for the program is expected to be around $1.5 billion.

Apart from improvement in foreign relations, the renewable energy market in Iran has also benefited from the role of several supportive regulatory measures, including feed-in tariffs.

By Clean Technica