TEHRAN- Iran has currently 1.5 quadrillion rials (about $42.8 billion) worth of unfinished water projects which it aims to finance by foreign investment and getting loans from the World Bank and the Islamic Development Bank, said Iran’s deputy minister of energy for water and wastewater Rahim Meidani.

Meidani said, “Government’s funding for water infrastructures is not sufficient for running the water projects and we seek other sources of finance,” the Tasnim news agency reported on Tuesday.

The official announced the government allocated 6 trillion rials (about $1.714 billion) to the water sector in the budget plan of the past Iranian calendar year (which ended on March 19, 2016), adding that the same amount is expected to be assigned for the current year.

Energy Minister Hamid Chitchian said in January 2016 that foreign companies have declared preparedness to transfer technology to Iran in the field of water and wastewater treatment plants.

According to him, Iran transferred financing of 97 water and wastewaters projects worth 44.8 trillion rials (about $1.239 billion) to the private sector. 

SJ/MA