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In this paper, special focus is paid to the long-term adoption of renewable electricity technologies and their implications for emissions reductions in Iran. MESSAGE, as a bottom-up energy supply optimization model, is used to assess the lowest-cost technology options. The potential impacts of transitioning to a renewable electricity supply are quantified, and the investment requirement to achieve a low-carbon generation mix is estimated. Alternative scenarios are defined to evaluate the impact of fossil fuel prices, the carbon tax and government incentives on the utilization of renewable resources, national renewable targets, and emissions reductions. The prioritization of non-hydro... 

Despite the abundant renewable energy sources, the Iranian energy sector relies almost entirely on fossil fuel energy resources. Power sector is dominant source of CO2 emissions and responsible for about 35% of total CO2 emissions in the country. Additionally, long-term electricity demand of Iran is expected to grow quickly, which in turn requires extensive investment to meet the growing demand over the next decades. On the other hand, increasing domestic fossil fuel consumption had been a serious challenge due to high costs of oil and gas. Current study pays particular attention to the possible penetration rates of renewable electricity technologies and their implications for fossil fuel...