Egypt's Minister of Electricity and New and Renewable Energy, Mohamed Shaker, revealed that his country is close to signing contracts to build an electricity transmission network to connect 2 gigawatts with Saudi Arabia.
It is scheduled that Egypt will finance about 40% of the project, while the Kingdom will pay the remaining 60%. The $1.6 billion project aims to connect the two countries' electricity networks with electric cables extending over a distance of 900 km.
According to the Enterprise bulletin, the project is expected to launch in 2023, after the NEOM project in Saudi Arabia delayed its launch date from what was previously scheduled.
Eight companies have submitted their bids for the construction of the project so far, as part of the tender that was launched earlier this month. The Saudi Al-Fanar Company submitted the highest offer so far, which amounted to $624.8 million, while the South Korean Hyundai EC Company submitted the lowest offer so far, with a value of $446.8 million.
Two alliances submitted their bids in early May to design and build four substations in both countries at a cost of $1 billion. The first consortium, led by China, and the second, which includes Hitachi, Orascom and Saudia for Electromechanical Services and Works, submitted to win the contract for the implementation of substations.
