The Ministry of Electricity and Energy has announced it will tender the execution of the electricity interconnection project between Egypt and Saudi Arabia through a packages system rather than turnkey system. The project, the ministry said, will enhance domestic industry and offer indirect employment opportunities in both countries. Minister of Electricity Ahmed Imam met with Gabr Desouki the Head of Egypt Electricity Holding Company and Ahmed El-Hanafi Head of the Egyptian Company for Electricity Transmission to discuss a comprehensive report concerning the project. Following the meeting, Imam announced that the project would consist of five packages. The first entails establishing two power stations of constant AC voltage of 500 kV in Badr City, in addition to a switch station for linking the antenna line with the marine cable in the Egyptian Nabq City. The second package includes two generator power stations of 500 kV East of Al-Madina and Tabouk, adding to it a switch station for the antenna lines and marine cable links in Saudi territory. Imam noted that the third package consists of an antenna line with a length of 450 Km starting from Badr City power stations to Nabq City's switch station, while the fourth package consists of an antenna line with a length of 850 Km from switch station to East of Al-Madina power station passing by the Tabouk station. The fifth package includes linking the two states switch stations using ground cables in Egyptian and Saudi lands and a marine cable of 500 kV through Al-Aqba Gulf for a distance of nearly 16 Km, he added. Imam mentioned that this project is based on energy exchange between two "brother countries" so that energy exchange capacity on interconnection lines will reach 3000 MW during summer rush hours. This will benefit from the different peak usage times in the two countries, which is the afternoon in Saudi Arabia and after sunset in Egypt. The minister said receipt of tender offers and bid opening in project consultant's tender was extended to 30 November for the 10 bidding international consulting firms to which the bid requirements has been sent. Imam added that the working area for the project executing consultant includes revising and updating (if needed) the bid requirements concerning the project's execution, in addition to providing technical assistance for the period before the tender and even after including the evaluation of the technical offers submitted in these tenders.
