Middle East & Africa News

Latest news and developments from Middle East and Africa regions

• Nigeria’s TCN requires NGN1 trillion grid investment

  November 27, 2020
  The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has announced that the country requires around NGN1 trillion to efficiently transmit electricity through the national grid. Despite sourcing USD1.6 billion from various multilateral donor agencies, this would not be enough to stabilise the grid.

• Uganda to construct transmission infrastructure for evacuating power from upcoming HPPs

  November 26, 2020
  Uganda is constructing various high voltage transmission lines and substations for evacuating power from several upcoming new hydro power plants (HPPs), and thus improving access to electricity.

• Kuwait’s MEW awards five-year substation maintenance service contract to Siemens

  November 25, 2020
  Kuwait’s Ministry of Electricity and Water (MEW) has awarded Siemens Energy with a five-year contract for providing maintenance services for 116 high voltage (HV) substations in the country. The project aims to ensure reliable power supply throughout Kuwait.

• Alfanar bags SAR41 million reactor installation contract from Saudi’s SEC

  November 24, 2020
  Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) has awarded Saudi-based Alfanar Construction Company with a SAR41.4 million contract for the installation of 380 kV reactors at the 380/115 kV Qaisumah substation.

• Saudi’s Al Shariff submits lowest bid to SEC for solar PV substation

  November 24, 2020
  As per a news report, Saudi-based Al Shariff Group has submitted a lowest bid of SAR197.7 million to the Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) for construction of the 380/132 kV Saad solar PV substation. A total of 14 bidders had submitted proposals.

• Morocco, Spain to implement earlier MoU for third grid link

  November 17, 2020
  Morocco and Spain have agreed to implement a previously-signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the establishment of the third interconnection between the two countries, which will be executed by Morocco’s Office National de l'Electricitéet de l'Eau Potable (ONEE) and Spain’s Red Eléctrica de España (REE).

• Nigerian TCN to re-conductor 132 kV Sokoto–Birnin Kebbi line

  November 17, 2020
  The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) will re-conductor the 30-km-long, 132 kV Sokoto–Birnin Kebbi single-circuit transmission line in order to increase bulk power supply to distribution centres in Sokoto.

• Saudi Arabia announces comprehensive power sector reforms

  November 16, 2020
  Recently, Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Energy has announced comprehensive reforms for the upliftment of the electricity sector, in line with the country’s Vision 2030, which aims to reduce its dependence on oil, diversify its economy, and develop public service sectors such as health, education, infrastructure, recreation and tourism.

• Saudi SEC receives lowest bid from Hyundai for Rafha substation project

  November 16, 2020
  As per a news report, South Korean Hyundai Engineering & Construction has submitted the lowest bid of SAR266 million to Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) for the construction of the 380/132 kV Rafha gas-insulated switchgear (GIS) substation.

• Cameroon’s SONATREL to add 400 kV lines and several substations till 2030

  November 16, 2020
  As per Cameroon’s Société Nationale de Transport de l'électricité (SONATREL) or the National Electricity Transmission Company’s 2020-30 investment plan, it plans to add 460 km of 400 kV transmission lines and four substations, and rehabilitate three transmission substations and about 12 source stations over the next decade.

• Kuwait’s MEW awards GE five-year substation maintenance contract

  November 12, 2020
  Kuwait's Ministry of Electricity and Water (MEW) has awarded the GE Renewable Energy’s Grid Solutions with a five-year maintenance contract of 54, 132 kV and 300 kV substations across the country.

• Elsewedy bags three transmission contracts worth EGP148 million in Egypt

  November 12, 2020
  Elsewedy Electric’s subsidiary, Elsewedy Electric for Trading & Distribution, has bagged three engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contracts worth EGP846 million from the state-owned Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company (EETC).

• UAE’s DEWA adds 20 substations to network in 2020

  November 9, 2020
  Recently, the United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has added 20 new power substations to its grid network, at a total cost of AED2.6 billion.

• Linxon submits lowest bid to Saudi’s SEC for expansion of substation [free access]

  November 4, 2020
  Linxon—joint venture (JV) between Swiss-Swedish multinational corporation ABB and Canadian engineering services company SNC-Lavalin—has submitted the lowest bid of SAR42.5 million to the Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) for the expansion of the 230 kV Ghazal substation.

• Saudi’s SEC awards SAR80 million 132 kV contract to L&T

  November 3, 2020
  As per a news report, Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) has awarded a SAR80.2 million contract to Indian engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) major, Larsen & Toubro (L&T), for 132 kV line and cable project.

• Indian KPTL commences works for 225 kV line in Mali

  November 2, 2020
  Recently, Ministère des Mines, de l'Energie et de l'Eau or the Ministry of Mines, Energy and Water has launched the construction of the 398-km-long, 225 kV line linking Sikasso, Bougouni, Sanankoroba and Bamako cities of Mali, which is being executed by the India-based engineering, construction and procurement (EPC) company, Kalpataru Power Transmission Limited (KPTL).

• Eskom commences construction of 400 kV Juno–Gromis line in South Africa

  November 2, 2020
  The South African state-owned power utility Eskom Holdings SOC Limited (Eskom) has commenced construction of the 282-km-long 400 kV line connecting the Gromis substation in the Northern Cape and the Juno substation in the Western Cape.

• Kuwait receives bid proposals for 132 kV, 300 kV substation projects

  October 29, 2020
  Kuwait's Ministry of Electricity and Water (MEW) has received bid proposals for the construction of gas-insulated switchgear (GIS) substations—SHPT”C”, SHPT”D”, SHPT”E” and SHPT”W”—on a turnkey basis.

• Kenyan KETRACO postpones commissioning of Olkaria–Lessos–Kisumu line to 2021

  October 29, 2020
  The scheduled completion of the 220/440 kV Olkaria–Lessos–Kisumu transmission line in Kenya has been shifted to 2021, due to the outbreak of the global COVID-19 pandemic.

• Uganda's earnings from electricity exports decline by USD25 million

  October 29, 2020
  As per a news report, during August 2019-20, Uganda’s earnings from electricity exports declined to USD25.64 million, as compared to USD50 million during the same period in the last year, representing a reduction by 95 per cent.