GCCIA Plans $3.5bn Investment to Strengthen Grid, Open Export Opportunities

The GCC Power Grid which links six Gulf states expects to invest more than $3.5 billion over the next 10 years to strengthen the grid, integrate renewable sources and open new export opportunities to neighbouring countries, the head of the grid's operator GCCIA said. 

The GCC grid is due to connect to Iraq next April, its first external link beyond the region, and is also looking at connecting to Jordan and Egypt and possibly Syria in future, said Ahmed Al-Ebrahim, CEO of the Gulf Cooperation Council Interconnection Authority (GCCIA).

GCCIA's transmission system links the grids of all six Gulf Cooperation Council member states, stretching from Oman to Kuwait.

"The region’s renewable energy capacity will be very large in the future, and the opportunities ahead are extremely promising," Al-Ebrahim said. Saudi Arabia's aim to generate 50% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2030, for example, would create major potential for power exports from the Gulf to Egypt and eventually to Europe, he said.

GCCIA will finance the projects and recover the costs through annual fees paid by member states.

Ahead of the GCC grid connecting to Iraq, negotiations are under way to finalise electricity export agreements between Iraq and Gulf states, Al-Ebrahim said.

The project costs exceeded $300 million, financed by GCCIA with no profit margin, and the authority expects to recover its investment over seven years through transmission tariffs, he said.

Jordan is also part of the expansion plans, and Syria could follow. "The first and most important step for us is the connection with Iraq, and then we will look at future opportunities," Al-Ebrahim said.

He said data centers and artificial intelligence (AI) projects in the Gulf pose a "major challenge" to power grids because of high and fluctuating demand.

"This is where the importance of interconnection comes in, to stabilize the grids and reduce the impact of this fluctuation," he added.