Receiving inquiries of competing companies on tenders of electrical connection with Saudi Arabia postponed

Improved relations with Riyadh will contribute to the implementation of the project, tenders to be completed next month: say sources

Egypt and Saudi Arabia decided to postpone the workshop that was scheduled to be held with the companies competing on the cables and transformer stations tender in the Egyptian-Saudi electrical interconnection project indefinitely.
Government sources told Daily News Egypt that the companies were addressed to attend a workshop to discuss and answer the questions of the two sides before analysing the offers, but that meeting was delayed without reasons. The companies were also not notified with a new date.
The sources pointed out that the tenders will be resolved next month, stressing that there is no intention to postpone the project, especially with the improvement of Egyptian-Saudi relations. The tender will result in the completion of the agreement on the project of electric linkage, which will allow the exchanging of 3,000MW between the two countries. The submitted offers will be analysed by a joint committee between Egypt and Saudi Arabia.
The winning company will connect an antenna line at a length of 450km, starting from the Badr City power station and stretching to the Nabq City switch station, in addition to an antenna line with a length of 850km from the switch station east of the Medina power station, passing through the Tabuk station. Alstom, ABB, and Siemens have all applied for the tender, and their offers will be analysed in coordination with the Saudi side.
The company winning this contract will establish two 500kV AC/DC transformer stations in Badr City and another linking station to connect to the aero line in Nabq.
The Italian Prysmian Group won the tender for the Egyptian-Saudi electrical interconnection cables project after competing against Norway's Nexans. Prysmian will connect two switch stations in Egypt and Saudi Arabia, in addition to a submarine cable of 500kV that is to cross the Gulf of Aqaba with a length of 16km.
The operation of the electric interconnection project with Saudi Arabia will start a trial period in 2019 to exchange 3,000MW at peak time.
The project costs about $1.6bn, with the Egyptian side's share amounting to $600m. The Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development, Islamic Development Bank, and the resources of the Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company, will contribute to the project's funding, along with the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development.