ABB Power Grids wins substation contract in Egypt

30 Mar 2020
ABB Power Grids wins substation contract in Egypt

ABB Power Grids has been awarded a contract by Egypt’s Elswedy Electric to provide high-voltage gas-insulated switchgear (GIS) and shunt reactors for a substation project in Egypt.

ABB will provide the equipment, which will include six bays of 500-kilovolt GIS, for the expansion of the Toshka 2 substation.

The expansion is the second phase of the 300MW interconnection project between Egypt and neighbouring Sudan. Egypt is aiming to become a hub from exchanging electricity with neighbouring countries following a significant capacity building programme in recent years.

Egypt is also planning to build an electrical interconnection with Saudi Arabia. Energy & Utilities reported earlier this year that the two countries had been aiming to sign the final contracts for the project by 30 May.

EETC board chairperson Sabah Mashali revealed on 3 February that the May date had been set for finalising agreements for the ambitious project.

The project faced numerous delays in the tendering and design phases with the initial memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the project having been inked in June 2013.

In October 2016, Italy’s Prysmian Group was awarded the contract to connect switch stations in Egypt and Saudi Arabia and install a 16km submarine cable to cross the Gulf of Aqaba.

The project is estimated to cost $1.6bn, with Egypt set to fund $600m of the total cost. The interconnection is expected to be able to transport up to 3,000MW of electricity a day.

In November 2015, the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development (KFAED) signed two agreements to assist with financing for the power connection. The first agreement was a $98m loan deal signed to cover part of the Egyptian section of the power connection project.

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