On Tuesday, February 7, 2023, the headquarters of the Gulf Electrical Interconnection Authority, in Dammam, Saudi Arabia, hosted the signing ceremony of the contracts for the implementation of the electrical interconnection project between the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council and the Republic of Iraq.
The contracts were signed by the Gulf Electrical Interconnection Authority, Eng. Ahmed Al-Ibrahim, CEO of the authority, and representatives of companies approved to implement the project.
The signing ceremony was witnessed by the executive management of the authority, and a delegation from the approved companies to implement the project to link the electricity networks of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries and the electricity network of the Republic of Iraq.
In the short term, the project will contribute to supplying the electricity network in southern Iraq with electrical energy and supporting the demand for electricity in Basra Governorate from the GCC countries. It also lays the future foundations for the exchange and trade of electric energy between the GCC countries and the Republic of Iraq under the umbrella of a regional and Arab market for electricity … to ensure the sustainability of electric power. At all times, it also contributes to achieving a number of sustainable development goals in the region.
The project includes the establishment of the Gulf Electrical Interconnection Authority by constructing double-circuit electrical interconnection lines with a voltage of 400 kilovolts from the Wafra station of the Authority in the State of Kuwait to the Al-Faw station located in the south of the Republic of Iraq, with a total length of 295 km, to supply Iraq with about 500 megawatts of energy from the countries of the Cooperation Council through The Gulf electrical interconnection network as a first stage, which is expected to take approximately 24 months to complete, with a total transmission capacity of 1800 megawatts.
The project includes the supply and installation of circuit breakers, electrical reactors, and measurement and control systems for the construction and expansion of substations in Al-Wafra and Al-Faw. It also includes advisory services for the preparation of environmental and social studies and supervision of implementation. The total cost of the project is approximately $220 million.
It is worth noting that the contract for the electrical interconnection project was signed between the Gulf Electrical Interconnection Authority and the Ministry of Electricity in the Republic of Iraq, in July 2022 AD, on the sidelines of the Jeddah Summit for Security and Development hosted by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in the presence of His Royal Highness Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, Minister of Energy, and His Excellency the Minister of Oil. The signing of this contract comes as a translation of the directives of the leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries to consolidate cooperation and partnership between the countries of the Cooperation Council and the Republic of Iraq based on their keenness on the development and prosperity of Iraq.
It is worth noting that the project, which aims to develop the Gulf electrical interconnection system and connect to the Iraq network, will be funded by the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development and the Qatar Fund for Development, with which the Interconnection Authority signed financing agreements for the project during the past year.
For his part, Engineer Ahmed Al-Ibrahim, CEO of the Gulf Electrical Interconnection Authority, confirmed that the project will contribute to strengthening cooperation with the Republic of Iraq in the field of electricity. The authority also adopts expansion projects for the interconnection network aimed at increasing the reliability of energy in the Gulf network, and making it more efficient, and added: “ The project represents great opportunities for energy exchange with Iraq, especially in light of the increase in the capacity of the electrical connection to achieve economical operation of the network, especially in the summer, and also to increase the security and stability of the network and reduce interruptions.” He added: “The project will also contribute to meeting part of the demand for electrical energy and filling the need In the Republic of Iraq, in addition to improving the performance and stability of the electrical network in southern Iraq, by providing it with a reliable electrical capacity of not less than 500 megawatts.
