EGYPT – Egypt’s independent Power Producer company, Kahraba has partnered with technology group Wärtsilä group to boost the capacity of Borg El Arab power plant near Alexandria, Egypt.
Under the agreement, Wärtsilä will deliver new generating equipment to add approximately 20MW of output to the existing Borg El Arab power plant.
Additionally, the technology group will upgrade the existing 40 MW plant with the latest generation control system.
The Borg El Arab plant currently operates with four Wärtsilä 34SG engines running on natural gas, the cleanest of all widely available fuels.
The increased industrial demand for electricity in the region requires additional generating capacity for the reliability of existing operations.
As a result, an additional two Wärtsilä 34SG engines has been deemed to be the optimal solution.
“Industrial growth is vital to the region’s economic development, and a reliable power supply is essential for driving this growth,” said Magdi El Badry, Chairman & Managing Director of Kahraba.
“We have been extremely satisfied with the efficiency and reliability of the Wärtsilä engines and the approach of Wärtsilä’s personnel in serving our needs to optimize our operations.”
According to Wärtsilä Energy Director for Africa, Marc Thriet, “We have worked very closely with Kahraba in the past and are delighted to be working with them again on this important project.”
The Director added that by operating the engines on locally available natural gas, the plant’s environmental footprint is lessened.
Furthermore, the flexibility of the Wärtsilä engines will enable the system to incorporate increasing levels of energy from renewable sources.
The deal is good news for Egypt, which has one of the largest electricity grids on the African continent and still increasing the use of renewable energy.
The government has set targets for renewables to comprise 42% of the country’s electricity mix by 2035, based on rapid solar and wind energy deployment.
The fast-starting and stopping capabilities of Wärtsilä’s gas engines provide the grid balancing needed to compensate for the intermittency of renewables.
Wärtsilä engines are ready to also operate on sustainable fuels in the future, once they become widely available, which makes them a future-proof solution.
Sustainable fuels together with engines can take care of long-term energy storage needs for periods with persistently low wind or solar conditions.
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