Cairo – Mubasher: A consortium comprised of Orascom Construction Plc, listed on the Egyptian Exchange (EGX) and Nasdaq Dubai, and Hitachi ABB Power Grids signed a contract with the Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company (EETC) to implement all work in Egypt regarding the electricity interconnection project with Saudi Arabia.
The consortium will establish a high-voltage direct current (HVDC) converter station in northeast Cairo and the transition station in Taba, Sinai, according to a statement on Tuesday.
The first stage of the project is scheduled to start operations in late 2024, with a capacity of 1.5 gigawatts (GW), and the balance of the capacity in mid-2025.
Another consortium of Hitachi ABB Power Grids and SSEM will carry out the work in Saudi Arabia.
The project in the two countries has a value of several hundreds of millions of US dollars, which will be financed by a multilateral development finance institution.
Through the project, both countries will exchange up to 3 GW at peak times, providing power supply to above 20 million people using modern technology to ensure maximum efficiency.
In the first half (H1) of 2021, Orascom Construction reported net profits of $53.4 million, up from $34.4 million in H1-20, including minority shareholders' rights.
