![]() Hyosung Power and Industrial Systems Performance Group Chief Cho Hyun-moon, left, and Qatar Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Energy and Industry H.E. Abdullah bin Hamad Al-Attiyah smile at each other while signing a contract for an electricity transmission network project in Doha, Qatar, Tuesday. / Courtesy of Hyosung |
By Kim Hyun-cheol
Staff Reporter
Korean conglomerate Hyosung announced Wednesday that it has signed a deal with Qatar to contribute to a $1.2 billion power network contract as part of the Gulf nation's efforts to meet its future demands for electricity.
The contract for the Electricity Transmission Network Expansion Project includes the setting up of 18 new substations, upgrading 11 others and the construction of a 400-kilovolt substation. Hyosung won the deal along with a consortium from the German-based company Siemens.
The project entails upgrading the country's existing power networks to accommodate new substations and to provide associated cables and overhead lines to meet the forecasted load growth from the infrastructure development, and to enhance the security of the overall network.
Investment in electricity networks in the Middle East is growing in line with the global economic recovery, and Qatar is one of the leaders in this trend.
The company received a letter of award to build five new substations on a turnkey basis from Qatar General Electricity & Water Corporation (Kahramaa) under phase nine of the project. The construction of the substations is scheduled to be completed in 2012.
It expects the agreement will secure the company a strong foothold as an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor in the Middle East.
Hyosung Power & Industrial Systems Performance Group Chief, Cho Hyun-moon and Qatar Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Energy & Industry, H.E. Abdullah bin Hamad Al-Attiyah, attended Tuesday's signing ceremony in Doha.
"(Hyosung) is growing rapidly as a professional EPC contractor as well as an ultra-high voltage electrical equipment manufacturer in the Middle East," Cho said at the ceremony.
``We will strive to become a global leader in providing a total solution for energy infrastructure and plant construction."
Buoyed by the success, Hyosung said it aims to further expand its presence in the area of ultra-high voltage EPC turnkey projects in the Middle East and North Africa.
Qatar officials praised Hyosung's capability, saying the company is expected to play a large role in developing Qatar's energy infrastructure. So far, only a limited number of European companies have participated in Kahramaa's turnkey projects due to its strict qualifying conditions.
``Considering Hyosung's product excellence and capabilities in the EPC turnkey projects, we believe that Hyosung is qualified for a long-term partnership for Qatar's Power Grid Expansion Project," Kahramaa's technical affairs director, Saad Ahmad Al-Mohannadi said.