ETA Ascon gears up to meet rising power requirements in the region

Speaking at the 15th GCC Cigre Seminar and 11th Exhibition for Electrical Equipment in Abu Dhabi, ETA Ascon Director Hameed Salahuddin said the company plans to expand in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Iran and the UAE, and is also looking to tap non-oil sources of energy in the region.

Citing a report from the World Energy Council, Mr. Salahuddin said the GCC will require at least 100,000 mega watts (MW) of additional power over the next 10 years to meet the demands of a growing population.

'As frontrunners in the field of power and water projects, the ETA Ascon and Star Group is poised for this big leap forward,' he said. 'Our diverse range of operations under a single umbrella gives ETA the unique advantage of providing a comprehensive package of project works and services at competitive costs while adhering to stringent standards of safety and quality.'

The USD 3.5 billion conglomerate, which currently employs more than 48,000 employees in the GCC, is involved in a wide array of sectors ranging from power projects and desalination, oil and gas, power control systems and switchgears, mechanical and electrical contracting, escalator engineering and civil engineering, construction and property development, shipping and trading, cement manufacture, facilities management, retail and healthcare.

Mr. Salahuddin also cited recent statistics from the Saudi Arabia-based Arab Petroleum Investment Corporation (APICORP) that indicate the Gulf will have to invest USD 345 billion between 2007 and 2011 to augment power supply in the region.

'The report notes that higher net savings, greater liquidity in the capital market and the prospect of sustained growth and revenues have induced project sponsors to seek larger scale as a means of reducing per-unit costs and greater scope in order to add more value to their business process,' he said. 'ETA's leadership factored in for such trends well before they set in.'

The ETA Power Projects Division, an internationally renowned Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contractor in the field of Extra High Voltage (EHV) Transmission, Distribution, Power Generation and Desalination projects, has designed, procured and installed several projects in the areas of EHV sub-stations, power distribution, overhead transmission lines up to 400kV and desalination projects with R/O and MED technology. It has completed two 100MW power generation projects in partnership with GE for the Federal Electricity and Water Authority.

Also in the UAE, an ETA-PPD consortium with Siemens is executing an 800MW power plant at Aweer for the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority. It has completed 70 kms of overhead transmission line between Dhaid and the H station.

'The prospects for the ETA Ascon and Star Group in the forthcoming years are very bright, given the immense potential in the areas we operate,' Mr. Salahuddin added. 'We look forward to consolidating our position further, and tapping both conventional and non-conventional sources of energy in the GCC market.'