Central Ninewa residents expected to benefit from new power cables (28/10/05)

Inhabitants of central Ninewa will soon receive more reliable electricity with the installation of 12 new underground power cables. The new cables will improve electrical services for approximately 500 to 1,000 local homes or businesses and provide additional connections between the substations that supply electricity to overhead power lines.

New power cables will decrease the dependency on generators

Management oversight for the project was provided by the Project & Contracting Office’s (PCO) Electricity Sector, with quality control supplied by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Gulf Region Division (USACE, GRD).

The $2.24 million project began in June. Presently, work on the power cables is approximately 90 per cent complete, and is expected to be finished by December. Cable testing remains to ensure they not only function correctly, but pass rigid international safety standards, according to the PCO.

Once installed, the additional power cables will decrease dependency on generators and provide a more continuous supply of power for local residents. The PCO believes that the local economy will be impacted positively as surrounding businesses and industries will have more hours of power and workers will be able to work longer. Additionally, traffic systems, computer networks and telephone systems are expected to run for longer periods of time.

The PCO Electrical Sector is responsible for 434 projects valued at approximately $3.2 billion. This figure includes about $140 million of non-construction funds allocated for equipment and training. To date, the Electricity Sector has completed approximately 82 projects totaling an estimated $660 million. Currently, an estimated $1,300 million is being used on projects that are now in progress, leaving $1,250 million for remaining projects.

The majority of 352 remaining Electricity Sector projects are scheduled for completion by December 2006.

Source: PortalIraq