Sadr City to get $106 million electrical distribution network (09/09/05)

A $106 million investment in Sadr City will impact 1.2 million residents, according to the US Army Corps of Engineers.

76 Iraqi sectors will have an all new electrical network installed

The investment calls for over 30,000 power poles, 23,820 street lights, 794 transformers and nearly 80,000 house metres. Seventy-six sectors (about 60 per cent of the community) will have an all new electrical network installed. In addition, approximately five kilometers of 33 kV cable will be laid from Jameela to Tharwa C to provide a new feeder line for electricity to the community at a cost of $879,835.

“The biggest challenge of this project was ensuring thorough coordination with all affected entities,” said Michael Mitchell, Sadr City electrical sector project manager for the USACE Gulf Region Central District.

“The Iraqi Ministry of Electricity, Sadr City Working Group, the 3rd Infantry Division, and the contractors reached an agreement on what would be accepted - that only the highest quality of materials would be ordered, that they would be installed properly, and the network would work as specified.”

“This is a true partnership of all involved,” Mitchell said. “The Ministry of Electricity will have a site engineer overseeing the installation in each sector as well as the tie-in to the main substations. The Ministry has also agreed to make the final connection from the transformer to the home and place a meter at each house.

The Corps of Engineers will have their own Quality Assurance Representative on site each day as well during the 10-month-construction period. Once construction gets underway, an estimated 60 to 100 Iraqi workers will be employed in each sector. Completion of the project is expected in June 2006.”

Source: PortalIraq