Iran is stepping up the search for overseas investment in its energy infrastructure after talks with Siemens and Rolls-Royce that point to the gradual opening of the country’s economy following the lifting of international sanctions.

Hamid Chitchian, Iran’s energy minister, met representatives of both companies in London last week to discuss collaboration in power generation technology.

The talks were focused on so-called decentralized power generators that can provide more localized and flexible supplies of electricity than big power stations.

No deals were struck but Chitchian told the Financial Times that Siemens and Rolls-Royce were interested and he hoped to “reach a result” soon.

Rolls-Royce said last week’s talks with Chitchian involved the potential use of piston engines made by the group’s power systems business in Germany.

“The minister requested a meeting with Rolls-Royce to discuss the renewal of Iran’s energy infrastructure and whether our diesel and gas power generation systems have a role to play,” it said.

Siemens said: “We have a close dialogue with the Iranian government and local partners in the area of infrastructure, energy and technology. We have been active in Iran for about 150 years and we have never left the country.”

Any deals would add to a provisional licensing agreement in March to allow Mapna Group, an Iranian energy and infrastructure conglomerate, to manufacture Siemens’ F-class turbines in Iran for use in gas-fired power stations.

The lifting of international sanctions related to Iran’s nuclear activities in January has removed many barriers to foreign investment in the country, with its energy sector one of the areas of greatest interest.

Deals with western oil and gas groups are yet to fully materialize but energy infrastructure companies have been quicker to move in. Turkey’s Unit International last month struck a $4.2bn agreement with Iran’s energy ministry to build seven gas power plants.

Chitchian said he expected more deals in future. “We have received various proposals for investment inside our country; some for building power stations and some to manufacture power plant equipment.”

Many companies and banks remain wary of Iran. While international sanctions have been lifted, some unilateral U.S. sanctions remain.

Chitchian acknowledged there were “still some problems” because of the “slowness” of banks in resuming relations with Iran but he said the “trend is positive”.

“Those companies and countries that can immediately adapt to the new situation will be the winners,” he added.

Iran needs investment to modernize and expand its power network to ensure the country has enough electricity to support economic growth.

It plans to add 26,500 megawatts of generating capacity in the next five years on top of the current 75,000MW, according to Chitchian. Almost a fifth of the new capacity will come from renewable sources such as wind turbines as part of carbon-reduction commitments at the UN climate talks in Paris last year.

Dalga Khatinoglu, an expert on the Iranian energy market for the Natural Gas Europe news service, said Iran would need $15 billion of investment in new generating capacity in the next five years and a further $5 billion in the transmission network.

“Iran strongly needs immediate foreign investment because the country has no choice but to boost rapidly its power generation capacity,” said Khatinoglu. “Iran’s electricity export plunged during the past two years due to the rapid increase of domestic demand.”

TEHRAN – Representatives of the French oil giant Total visited Parsian Energy Intensive Industrial Special Economic Zone in Iran’s southern province of Hormozgan to explore investment capacities, Shana reported on Saturday.

In a meeting, Hassan Shahrokhi, director of the zone, and the French company’s envoys discussed the projects with the feature of comparative advantage to be implemented in the area.

Shahrokhi briefed Total representatives on advantages of investment in special industrial zones and noted that based on Iran’s law, investors can use many exemptions and advantages in such areas.

The envoys for their part, acknowledged that investment in Parsian Zone is highly lucrative and with low risk.

Establishment of petrochemical complexes with annual capacity of 20 million tons of petrochemical products is among projects foreseen for this strategic area.

By establishing mining infrastructures, Iranian Mines & Mining Industries Development & Renovation Organization (IMIDRO) has paved the way for foreign investment in the zone and so far several major international companies have shown interest in establishment of their specialized docks in the zone.

With an area of 9800 hectare, Parsian Zone, a subsidiary of IMIDRO, is located in the west of Hormozgan province.

Iran is planning its first tender for utility-scale renewable-energy projects by year end as it begins a green power build out that could draw $12 billion of investment by the time it’s complete.

The nation wants to install 5 gigawatts of renewable energy in the next five years and an additional 2.5 gigawatts by 2030, Iran’s energy minister Hamid Chitchian said Thursday in an interview in London. The Persian Gulf nation, re-opened to investors following last year’s nuclear deal, has been courted by international green power investors at the same time it boosts oil production for export.

“We’re not going to use the money from oil in that sector at all,” Chitchian said. “All the investment will be done by the private sector, including local and foreign companies.”

At least 150 trade delegations from around the globe have visited Tehran in the six months since economic sanctions were dropped.

Tehran’s government is seeking commerce with countries and companies offering the best financial terms rather than prioritizing political and historical ties. The energy ministry is already in talks with some of the world’s largest renewable-energy players including Vestas Wind Systems A/S and Siemens Wind Power Ltd., Chitchian said.

Vestas’ chief sales officer, Juan Aratuce, said last month that Iran could be an important new market for wind energy. Automaker Iran Khodro Co. is negotiating with South Korea’s LG International Corp. to jointly develop electric vehicles.

“Foreign direct investment dried up during the sanctions but it is already starting to flow,” said Mohammad Hassan Habibollahzadeh, Iran’s charge d’affaires in UK “Many companies have signed agreements during the last few months. Electricity is considered to be one of the most important sectors.”

Most of Iran’s power plants are over 40 years old and need to be renovated and repowered, he said. The government is planning to invest a total of $50 billion in its electricity system in the next seven years.

Iran will tender 1 gigawatt of wind and as many as 3 gigawatts of solar, likely in several stages, Chitchian said. It is also seeking to build biomass and geothermal plants and swap natural gas for electricity with Armenia.

Iran may also add solar to its system of energy swaps, which before sanctions were lifted allowed the country to trade crude for refined products. Under a so-called “solar for service” program, developers and land owners would split cash flows generated from power sales.

Iran currently supplies 80 percent of its power from natural gas and wants to raise that figure to 90 percent by the end of next year.

Greek Environment and Energy Minister Panos Skourletis and Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Europe and America Majid Takht-Ravanchi agreed to expand energy cooperation between the two countries, noting the big potential in this area, the Greek ministry said in a press release.

At a meeting that also included Iran’s ambassador to Athens and Hellenic Petroleum CEO Grigoris Stergioulis, the Iranians highlighted their increased cooperation with Greece’s largest refiner. The two sides also discussed liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects, renewable energy and ways to conserve energy, the Greek ministry said.

Skourletis said Greece wants “to be a bridge between Iran and the European Union” and confirmed Athens intentions to boost energy cooperation between the two countries.

Takht-Ravanchi, during his visit to Greece also met with Greek Minister of Economy, Development and Tourism, Giorgos Stathakis in Athens on July 13. They discussed all the aspects of extending Iran-Greece cooperation in areas of economy, trade, and industry, in their bilateral talks. They also expressed willingness to look into areas of pharmaceuticals, advanced technologies, ship building and shipping, tourism, and banking.

The Iranian and Greek officials also vowed to realize the agreements signed during the February visit of Greek Prime Minsiter Alexis Tsipras in Tehran.

TEHRAN- The British Photovoltaic Association (BPVA) will construct a €1.5-billion solar plant with the capacity of 1,000 megawatts in Iran, the association’s chairman of the board Reza Sheibani announced, Shana news agency reported on Friday.

BPVA is the National Trade Association of the UK solar photovoltaic industry. It is a strong political and commercial organization.

Explaining that the contract was signed between Iranian Energy Ministry and BPVA in London and in the presence of the Iranian Energy Minister Hamid Chitchian and a number of senior British officials, Sheibani added that besides building the said solar plant, the agreement also seeks establishing a factory at the value of €25 million to build solar panels and transferring technological know-how to the Islamic Republic.

“Construction of the solar plant will be financed by attraction of foreign financial resources and investments, while the solar panel factory, with the capacity of 500 megawatts per annum, will be built via cooperating with Iranian companies,” he added.

Iran, which sits on the world’s largest natural gas reserve and also holds the fourth place globally in terms of oil reserves, is also showing interest in renewable energy resources to improve energy security, reduce internal dependence on hydrocarbons, and meet its projected growth in electricity demand.

TEHRAN- Iran’s Ministry of Energy and UK Export Finance (UKEF) signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) in London over financing Iranian water and electricity projects, IRNA reported on Wednesday.

The MOU was penned on Tuesday by Director General of Health, Safety and Environment Department of the Iranian Energy Ministry Bahram Taheri and UKEF’s Head of Business Group Gordon Welsh, in the presence of Iranian Energy Minister Hamid Chitchian, the charge d’affaires of the Islamic Republic of Iran, as well as a number of British authorities.

“All the Iranian energy projects which require foreign investment or finance should obtain UKEF’s insurance coverage,” Chitchian told IRNA after the agreement’s signing ceremony, hoping that the inked MOU would ease financing of Iranian projects by British companies.

“Iran is in need of huge investments in power sector and plans to add 47,000 to 50,000 megawatts to its current capacity in the coming ten years,” he said.

Chitchian, accompanied by a delegation, arrived in London on Monday to confer on development of bilateral water and electricity cooperation and attraction of investments with the European country.

The Iranian minister visited the UK Energy and Climate Change Secretary Amber Rudd on Tuesday and held negotiations on energy cooperation with her, where he outlined Iran’s energy projects and welcomed British companies’ joint venture investments in Iran and also called on the UK banking authorities to regulate Iranian banking ties with the UK banks.

UKEF is the UK’s export credit agency providing trade finance and insurance to support UK exporters of all sizes.