DAMMAM — Prince Saud Bin Naif, emir of Eastern Province, has launched the start of conducting the electrical linkage between the GCC Interconnection Authority (GCCIA) and Iraq. The launch was attended by Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz Bin Salman and his Iraqi counterpart Ziyad Ali Fadhil Al-Razeej, in addition to a number of energy ministers in the Arab Gulf states, as well as officials from Gulf and Iraq sides. Prince Saud expressed his happiness of this step, confirming that the project will result in great benefits and abundance in the entire region. It will also be a beginning of a new start towards broader horizons and larger markets. He added that the launch of the electrical linkage project comes as an appreciation for the support of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and the Crown Prince and the leaders of the GCC countries, as it has become evident year after year since the establishment of the first step in the 2009, which Saudi Arabia embraced. According to the announced studies, the project has provided about half of the total reserves required in the countries before completing the electrical linkage, Prince Saud said. The project has also provided reliable, sustainable and competitive electricity transmission services, which has a positive impact on supporting all the development activities in the regions. Prince Saud noted that the linkage project enters a broader world with the launch of the electrical linkage with Iraq, through which several goals will be achieved. The project will enhance the position of GCC countries in supporting an increasing the regional market value for electricity, Prince Saud said. He added that it will also achieve the aspirations of the region's people in trade and the exchange of electrical energy. The project is also considered as an important part of the project of the comprehensive Arab electrical linkage, which will link the Arab countries together. "The Arab electrical linkage project will also link the Arab countries with places farther away," Prince Saud confirmed. From his side, Prince Abdulaziz said that the start of conducting the electrical linkage project between the GCC electricity network and the southern Iraq electricity network. Its implementation contract was signed between GCCIA and Iraq's Electricity Ministry on the sidelines of the Jeddah Security and Development Summit on July 2022, and it represents one of the projects that aim in enhancing the cooperation between the GCC countries and Iraq in the economic and social fields. He indicated that the electrical linkage is being adopted by several countries, due to the fact that it enhances the security and stability of the linkage networks, and maximizes the economic benefits. The electrical linkage also increases the capability of merging renewable energy sources, in a way that contributes in creating an international and regional market to exchange and export the electrical energy. Prince Abdulaziz said that the electrical linkage network of the GCC countries was established according to a study that was prepared during the period from 1984 to 1986, with funds from the Saudi Industrial Development Fund. The electrical linkage network was conducted by the research institute of King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, as well as the scientific research institute in Kuwait, along with international consultants with the supervision of a technical working team from the member countries. This also included detailed studies that confirmed the benefits that countries could reap from the electrical linkage. Prince Abdulaziz said that due to the results of the detailed studies, the implementation of the first phase of the project was approved in the Muscat Summit in 1997, through which all the GCC countries witness the benefits achieved of the project that began in 2009. Regarding the direct Saudi-Iraqi electrical linkage project, Prince Abdulaziz said that the principles of the linkage agreement signed between the two sides are being implemented. The Saudi-Iraqi electrical linkage will extend from Arar, north of Saudi Arabia, to Al-Yusufiyah, north of Baghdad, while its initial capacity is 1000 megawatts. The project will support, in addition to the GCC-Iraqi electrical linkage, the Iraqi electrical network, and enhance its ability in meeting electricity needs of Iraqi people during the coming years. It will also strengthen the security and stability of electrical linkage networks. Prince Abdulaziz expressed his appreciation for the progress of work on the direct Saudi-Iraqi electrical linkage project, which is being supervised by a joint team from Saudi Arabia and Iraq. In turn, the Iraqi Minister of Electricity, Ziyad Ali Fadhil Al-Razeej, confirmed that laying the foundation stone for the Iraqi-GCC electrical linkage project is considered one of the important strategic projects at the level of Arab integration in the field of electric energy. Iraq is keen to adopt the electrical linkage project with neighboring countries, he said. He added the linkage project with the GCC countries and the linkage with Saudi Arabia reflect the desires of the Iraqi government to enhance energy and economic integration among the Arab countries. The Chairman of the Board of Directors of the GCCIA Eng. Mohsen Bin Hamad Al-Hadrami said that the GCC-Iraqi electrical linkage project, since its operation until now, has supported nearly 2,700 support cases. He said that the project contributed to achieving savings for the GCC countries ranging from $200 to $300 million annually, and the cumulative savings for the GCC countries since the start of operating the project amounted to about $3 billion. As a first stage, Eng. Al-Hadrami stressed that the project aims to meet part of the demand for electrical energy in southern Iraq, with about 500 megawatts of energy from the GCC countries through the Gulf electrical linkage network. Eng. Al-Hadrami stated that work on the project will take about 24 months, noting that the project is expected to be completed and operated by the end of next year.
