Analysis of renewable energy capacity in Iran (Case: wind and solar energy)

Energy is the basis of a country's economic, social, and cultural development; therefore, energy policies are vital and decisive. The finite nature of fossil fuel energy sources makes the increasing importance of renewable energies clear to everyone. Given Iran's geographical position for producing renewable energies, policymakers and planners have paid attention to this important matter in the country's development plans. Iran is located in a region that enjoys a favorable status among various parts of the world, with many sunny days throughout the year and a minimum solar radiation of four kilowatt-hours per square meter per day. Based on this, 20-year time series data of maximum wind speed and solar radiation in the country's provinces have been collected, and using them, the wind and solar power of the country's provinces have been calculated, and finally, an economic evaluation of establishing wind farms and solar power plants in the provinces has been carried out. To evaluate and compare the potential (wind and solar energy) of the provinces, an appropriate index in this regard has been calculated, based on which the overall average and maximum index of wind and solar energy can be calculated.
According to this index, for a province whose average (solar or wind) is maximum among the country's provinces, the index value will be 100.