TEHRAN- Iranian deputy energy minister, at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Energy Ministers' meeting, emphasizing the necessity of expanding regional cooperation in the energy sector, presented five operational proposals of the Islamic Republic of Iran for the development of energy cooperation among the member countries of this organization.

According to Shana news agency, quoting the Ministry of Energy, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Energy Ministers' meeting was held on Friday in the city of Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, with the presence of the delegation of the Islamic Republic of Iran. 

In this meeting, Mostafa Rajabi Mashhadi, representing the Minister of Energy and serving as the Deputy Minister for Electricity and Energy, headed a delegation that included the Deputy Chief of the Renewable Energy and Electricity Efficiency Organization (SATBA), the Director General of the Office of Strategy, Monitoring and Control of Electricity Transmission and Distribution of the Ministry of Energy, the Deputy Director of the International Affairs Center of the Ministry of Energy, a specialized SCO expert in the Deputy for Electricity and Energy, and representatives from the Ministry of Petroleum and the Atomic Energy Organization. 

In his speech, Rajabi Mashhadi described the organized cooperation of the SCO member states in the energy sector as an effective factor for sustainable development, strengthening energy security, and regional economic growth, and emphasized the readiness of the Islamic Republic of Iran to expand cooperation within this framework. 

Referring to Iran's capacities in the energy sector, including the country's significant share in oil and gas reserves and production, as well as the connection of Iran's electricity grid to seven neighboring countries, he elaborated on the areas for developing joint energy cooperation among the organization's members. 

The Deputy Minister for Electricity and Energy also enumerated the development of joint investment, technology transfer, expansion of renewable energies, optimization of energy consumption, and development of smart electricity grids as among the most important axes of cooperation among member countries. 

Rajabi Mashhadi further proposed the five operational initiatives of the Islamic Republic of Iran for developing energy cooperation within the SCO, which include forming an energy consortium of member states, developing regional electricity grid connections, establishing a regional electricity market framework, technological cooperation in the field of smart grids, and holding an annual electricity conference of the member countries. 

He also, while emphasizing the importance of energy infrastructure security, condemned the recent attacks on Iran's energy facilities and reminded that energy infrastructure is considered a protected target from attack under the Geneva Conventions and UN Security Council resolutions. 

At the end, the Deputy Minister for Electricity and Energy expressed his gratitude to the government and officials of Kyrgyzstan as the hosts and organizers of this meeting.

MA