CESI Middle East, a market leader in power systems consulting and testing, has announced that it has been selected by the Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development, the pan Arab development finance institution, to undertake a feasibility study to determine the best options for electrical and gas interconnections scenario to create a single energy market for 20 Arab Countries by 2030.This major assignment comes after CESI launched its Middle East operations during the World Future Energy Summit in Abu Dhabi, in January.
The project will establish a strategy and master plan to further developments in the trade of electricity and gas among the Arab countries, and to determine the trade-offs between export of electricity and/or natural gas.
Dr. Matteo Codazzi CESI’s CEO, said: “As a global leader in consulting and engineering services to the energy industry, we see our project with the Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development as a major contribution towards the creation of an integrated energy market among 20 Arab countries. By determining the best electrical and natural gas trade scenario for each Arab country separately and for the region as a whole, the study will identify key Infrastructures to be developed or enhanced to maximize the use of the nations’ gas resources. Once deployed, those infrastructures will significantly foster the economic development of the region and benefit each of the 20 participating countries.”
Mr. Floris Schulze, Managing Director of CESI Middle East, said: “CESI has already undertaken several interconnection projects in the region, and this is a continuation of our successes here to date. We are very proud to have been chosen to undertake this important project – the first since launching our Middle East presence in January”.
CESI will be leading a consortium with Ramboll, a leading engineering, design and consultancy company based in Denmark, to successfully achieve all the objectives of this project. Ramboll is ranked among the top European consultants in providing services to the various markets including energy management consulting and the oil and gas industry.
CESI, together with Ramboll, started the project by analyzing the present status and future scenarios in the energy sector, followed by assessing the energy exchange across the 20 Arab countries and finally by proposing a ranking of the best natural gas and electric interconnection options, along with a time schedule and cost estimation for the implementation plan.