Three units of 1,000 MW combined cycle plant inaugurated in Egypt

A 1000 MW combined cycle power plant was inaugurated in Asyut recently by Egypt’s Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab. With an investment cost of around $746 million, the power plant is established on an area of 85 acres and consists of eight generating units, each capable of generating 125 MW.

Three units out of the eight have been inaugurated and the power plant is expected to become fully operational by the end of the 2015 summer plan over three stages, to counter rolling blackouts. Asyut power plant is part of Egypt’s 2015 plan to overcome electricity shortages, which includes adding 3632 MW to the country’s power grid, with an investment cost of around $2.65 billion.

Minister of Electricity Mohamed Shaker said the project was completed in a record time of five-and-a-half months. The power plant is established jointly by the Egyptian Orascom and the American General Electric companies. A combined cycle power plant conserves fuel efficiently, as blackouts in Egypt have been attributed to lack of fuel operating regular power plants.