Global technology and engineering conglomerate GE said it has completed the construction of the 500/220 kilovolt (kV) Badr substation located in Cairo, Egypt, and also the work on connecting it to the national grid.
The gas-insulated substation Badr, located in the north-eastern Cairo Governorate, will dispatch 1.5 gigawatt (GW) of electricity, in response to increased power generation in the area and secure reliable power supply coupled with minimal losses of transferred power.
The turnkey substation, which came online at the end of September 2017, will play a strategic role in the upcoming Egypt-Saudi Arabia Interconnection, said a statement from GE.
The project links the national grids of both countries from Badr city in Egypt to Madinah and Tabuk cities in Saudi Arabia via a 1,300-km transmission line.
The Badr substation will connect 1.5 GW, or 50 per cent of the total exchange capacity of the Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company's (EETC) project, which is the power equivalent to meet the needs of more than one million homes.
With a difference in peak demand times during the day for each country, the interconnection will help secure stable transmission to meet such needs, said the GE statement.
The substation will leverage GE Power’s Grid Solutions portfolio, which includes GE’s T155 550 kV and B105 220 kV gas-insulated substations. These technologies meet the requirements of the network in terms of power generation, transmission and heavy industry applications.
Furthermore, the B105 and T155 are environment-friendly, and contain digital monitoring control and protection capabilities that enable them to be readily integrated into the smart grid.
EETC chairman Gamal Abdel Rehim said the Egypt-Saudi Arabia Interconnection is strategic for the country's electricity sector.
"We are proud of the work we’re doing with GE as a key partner and technology provider helping us realise this project. GE’s advanced solutions will support us in meeting Egypt’s growing energy generation capacity and securing reliable power supply with efficient transmission of electricity," stated Rehim.
GE is also providing local project management, engineering, design, fabrication, the erection of nine single phase power transformers, site management, testing and commissioning on a turnkey basis. GE will also provide factory and site training for EETC’s engineers, as well as the supply of spare parts.
Mohammed Mohaisen, the president and CEO for GE Power’s Grid Solutions business in the Middle East and North Africa and Turkey, said: "We are delighted to contribute towards Egypt’s target to upgrade its national electricity grid and proud to collaborate with the Ministry of Electricity and EETC to bring our latest technologies and solutions to address these needs."
"The B105 and T155 are both environment-friendly, have proven field reliability, higher availability and can easily be integrated into a smart grid. With an increase in power generation, the need for a more advanced electricity transmission network and Egypt’s growing industrial sector, these technologies will help address the changing requirements of the country’s grid infrastructure," he added.
Trade Arabia
November 3
