Gulf states link electricity grids

摘要

Kuwait, Qatar, and Bahrain successfully connected their electrical power networks July 26 marking the completion of the first stage of a project to interconnect the power grids of all six Gulf Cooperation Council nations, according to the official Kuwaiti news agency KUNA. A week earlier, the three countries also hooked up their electrical power networks with Saudi Arabia in synchronized trial runs that were overseen by the Gulf Cooperation Council Interconnection Authority. The authority plans to complete the power grid in 2011 by linking in Oman and the United Arab Emirates.rnThe network comprises a series of marine cables stretching from the main network in Saudi Arabia to Bahrain, continuing to Qatar and through to Kuwait. The estimated $1.4 billion electrical network, which has been more than a decade in gestation, is being initiated one year later than previously expected. The aim of the grid is to provide additional electricity reserves for the six countries in times of emergency and blackouts.