The $1.8 billion electricity interconnection project between Egypt and Saudi Arabia is 60 percent complete, Bloomberg Ashraq reported, quoting an Egyptian government official.

The first phase will begin operation in July 2025, with the interconnection allowing the exchange of up to 3,000 megawatts (MW) of power by early 2026, the report said.

The project consists of three large high-voltage transformer stations, two in Saudi Arabia and one in Egypt. 

The overhead lines have a length of nearly 1,350 kilometres, in addition to other marine cables. 

The project is in the stage of laying 22-km-long large pipes in the Red Sea through which eight underwater cables will connect the Kingdom and Egypt .

In March 2023, the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) said it would provide a “green” loan of $103 million to the Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) for the interconnection project. 

In November 2021, Switzerland-based Hitachi Energy said it was partnering with local firms in Saudi Arabia and Egypt to implement the interconnection project.

(Writing by P Deol; Editing by Anoop Menon)

(anoop.menon@lseg.com)

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