Younis: El Kremat Plant output to surpass High Dam by 150 percent CAIRO: Civil works are set to begin this month to prepare El Kremat Power Plant for the upgrading of the Kremat 3 station to add 750 megawatts in annual output capacity, Minister of Electricity and Energy Hassan Younis said. Negotiations are now underway between Arab Contractors and Sidney-based WorleyParsons Limited to execute the LE 415 million Kremat 3 project, bringing the total output of the plant up to 2,800 megawatts. Younis added construction is expected to last for 32 months once an agreement is reached. Arab Contractors signed on last Tuesday to lay the foundation for the project including concrete works, cooling pipe and underground pipe installation and construction of service offices. Once completed, the LE 2.4 billion Kremat Plant s output will surpass that of the High Dam by almost 150 percent. El Kremat is already one of the country s largest producers with two 250 megawatt stations set to enter the production cycle within the next two months. As part of the government s plans to add 7,000 megawatts by 2012, another 250 megawatt station will join the North Cairo Plant in October. And in December, a 250 megawatt station will join the Tulkha Plant. The Ministry of Electricity has been racing to attract investment toward infrastructure construction after the country s annual electricity consumption increased by more than 6 percent in 2006 and climbed by another 7 percent in 2007. Talk of turning to nuclear energy as a cheap and sustainable source of energy began in the second half of last year but has since been dampened by projected high start-up costs for the program. In December, The European Investment Bank signed an agreement with MoE for a 260 million euro (LE 2 billion) loan, in line with the European Union s Neighborhood Policy, to help finance the construction of two power stations at Al Atf and Sidi Kreir. The stations will produce a combined 1,500 megawatts of power. The project, estimated to cost LE 5 billion, is part of MoE s five year plan to begin in 2007. MoE has budgeted LE 36 billion for station construction and plant upgrades and another LE 10 billion for distribution for its 2007-12 plan, according to Mohamed Awad, Egyptian Electricity Holding Company president.
