MUSCAT -- An international consultant has commenced work on the front-end engineering design (FEED) of a new transmission line that will connect a massive power project planned at Sur with the Sultanate's main power grid. The FEED contract is being undertaken on behalf of the state-owned Oman Electricity Transmission Company (OETC), which owns, operates and manages the grid -- also called the Main Interconnected System (MIS).
According to Saif bin Abdullah al Sumri, Chairman of the Board of Directors of OETC, design engineering work will initially focus on evacuating power from a roughly 500 megawatt (MW) capacity plant envisioned in the first phase of the development of a giant Independent Power Project (IPP) at Sur. Total power generation capacity at the Sur IPP is proposed to be ramped up to a staggering 2,000 MW in the second phase of this truly world-scale project.
Speaking to journalists on the sidelines of a ceremony at which a raft of power transmission contracts were inked, Al Sumri said OETC would invest a "substantial" amount in building a transmission system connecting the proposed Sur IPP to the grid. The new transmission network will be fully in place well before the IPP is brought into operation within the next 3-4 years, he noted.
The new transmission link to the Sur IPP is one of several major initiatives identified by OETC in its current five-year investment plan, the chairman explained. Substantial investments will be made in upgrading and expanding the power grid in trend with the growth of the power generation infrastructure, he said. Meanwhile, Al Sumri signed a number of contracts for the upgrade and augmentation of OETC's power transmission network.
OETC board members, as well as top executives of the Electricity Holding Company and its subsidiaries, attended the signing ceremony at InterContinental Muscat yesterday evening. In opening remarks, OETC General Manager Ali bin Said al Haddabi said the contracts were critical to meeting the growing energy demands of the country. In all, nine contracts totalling RO 42.9 million in value were signed here yesterday.
The largest of the contracts, valued at RO 21.5 million was awarded to Saudi National Contracting Company for the replacement of sections of OETC's 22KV and 132KV overhead lines to underground cables. Undergrounding of overhead lines will initially be limited to parts of Muscat Governorate, said Al Sumri. Larsen & Toubro (Oman), represented by its Chief Executive M Shyamsunder, signed a contract to build a new 132/33KV grid station at Qurayat at a cost of RO 10.6 million.
Leading engineering contractor Bahwan Engineering Company (BEC), represented by Suresh K Virmani, Managing Director, was awarded a contract to upgrade OETC's grid stations at Madinat Al Sultan Qaboos, Bausher and Barka at a total cost of RO 5.1 million. International power systems contractor ABB won a contract worth RO 3.3 million to upgrade OETC's communications system linking all the major grid stations with the company's Load Despatch Centre.
Finally, local Omani firm Dawood Contracting signed a deal to build OETC's store at Mawaleh at a cost of RO 838,000. OETC owns, operates and manages the Main Interconnected System (MIS), a massive grid that covers much of the northern half of the Sultanate. State-owned OETC's transmission system serves Muscat Governorate and the Batinah, Dhahirah, Dakhiliyah and Sharqiyah regions. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Electricity Holding Company SAOC with 99.99 per cent shares and Ministry of Finance with 0.01 per cent shares.
By Staff Reporter
© Oman Daily Observer 2010
