Egypt to export electricity in 2018: Siemens-Egypt CEO

CAIRO – 5 March 2018: Egypt will be able to export its surplus of electricity by the end of 2018, once the three Siemens combined cycle plants become fully operational, as part of the country’s plan to be an electricity transfer and circulation regional hub, CEO of Siemens Egypt, Emad Ghaly, said on Sunday.

Ghaly talked about the updates and progress of his company’s power plants in Egypt in an interview with ON Live, pointing out that the company has been operating in Egypt for more than 117 years.

Siemens’ recent project in Egypt was setting up a service center at the Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone) in Ain Sokhna, which will provide maintenance and other services for all power plants, he said.

Master plan of 2025

Egypt signed a memorandum of understanding with Siemens during the Egyptian Economic Development Conference held in Sharm El-Sheikh in March 2015. The memorandum aimed to prepare a master plan to strengthen and develop the electricity grid until 2025.

The master plan includes solutions to problems in the electricity sector, taking into account the sector’s generation capacities of traditional, coal, nuclear, and renewable energies, as well as the required stations and lines to absorb the produced capacities.

In 2016, the Egyptian Electricity Holding Company signed contracts with Siemens to implement three combined-cycle power plants with a total capacity of 14,400MW. The three power plants are in Borollos, Beni Suef, and the New Administrative Capital. The new energy projects are established in cooperation with the German company Siemens and its local partners Orascom and Elsewedy Electric.

The financing package for the Siemens’ part of the €6bn contracts was structured by Siemens Financial Services (SFS)—this includes a tailored guarantee concept.

In June 2016, Siemens had signed agreements worth €8bn for high-efficiency natural gas-fired power plants and wind power installations that will boost Egypt’s power generation capacity by more than 50%, compared to the currently installed base. The projects will add an additional 16.4 gigawatt (GW) to Egypt’s national grid to support the country’s rapid economic development and meet its growing population’s demand for power.

Siemens will also deliver up to 12 wind farms in the Gulf of Suez and west Nile areas, comprising around 600 wind turbines and an installed capacity of 2GW.

CEO of Siemens Egypt praised the improvement in the investment climate in Egypt, adding that the government’s clear vision and plan for the country’s long-term development of Egypt is a sign that the future holds further improvements.

Egypt is now resolutely setting the course for sustained development and economic growth with the Sustainable Development Strategy: Egypt Vision 2030, serving as a roadmap for making Egypt a strong and stable economy on the long-term, Ghaly said.

He pointed out that Siemens has extended a long-term contract to provide service and maintenance, as well as component upgrades at the Nubaria, Talkha, and El-Kureimat power stations.

The 10-year extension calls for Siemens to continue providing service and maintenance for eight SGT5-4000F gas turbines and the associated generators. In addition to long-term service and maintenance, the scope of the new agreement for the three power stations includes modernisations, upgrade measures, and lifetime extensions for eight gas turbines designed to achieve optimal performance.