DOHA: Qatar General Electricity and Water Corporation (Kahramaa) will sign a contract on January 4 for a major power cables import project.
Qatar continues to invest heavily in the country's infrastructure. Kahramaa's Power Transmission Expansion project is intended to build the main transmission networks for power supply to industrial and domestic sectors.
Last year the company awarded several contracts for various phases of its network expansion project. For instance, early in December last year, Kahramaa floated tenders for its IX phase of the project. The tender included laying of Extra High Voltage (EHV) power cables in various routes on different voltage levels ranging from 220kV to 33kV. Kahramaa's IX phase of transmission expansion project represents a new stage to continue the reinforcement to the main transmission networks and to secure the power supply to industrial and domestic sectors.
Kahramaa also last year awarded a strategic contract worth ¤140m to Italian cable maker Prysmian for the development of the first ever submarine cable turnkey project serving Doha city. The installation is due to start this year and is slated for completion at the end of 2010.
This agreement followed an earlier 168m euro contract secured by a Prysmian led group for the construction of a high voltage underground cable system.
The project would involve commissioning services for 220KV submarine and underground power cables for a total of 63Km and other related accessories.
Among other major power transmission contracts in 2008 is the one awarded by Kahramaa to French firm Nexans, the worldwide leader in cable industry. The turnkey contract worth ¤58m involved the implementation of six underground power links, ranging from 34 to 250 MVA, to reinforce and extend the high voltage (HV) network serving Doha.
These power links which will connect substations serving the Al Wajbah area in Doha form part of Kahramaa's phase VIII projects for the expansion and development of Qatar's electricity network intended to increase its capacity to meet the rapid increase in demand resulting from the country's urban and economic development.
Besides, ETA Star International, a member of the $ 5bn Dubai-based ETA Ascon Star Group also bagged in 2008 a contract valued at approximately QR 828m for Phase VIII of Kahramaa's Power Transmission System expansion project.
The work involves supply, installation, testing and laying of high-voltage power cables in various parts of Doha.
© The Peninsula 2009
