Trial operations for the $1.2 billion (BD453.6 million) GCC electricity grid are being discussed at a meeting of member states.

A two-day meeting of the GCC Interconnection Authority (GCCIA) started in Dammam, Saudi Arabia's Eastern province on Sunday.

Board member and Bahrain's Electricity and Water Authority chief executive Dr Abdulmajeed Al Awadhi is representing Bahrain at the meeting, led by chairman Yousif Janahi, from Qatar.

The project, aimed at reducing the cost of power generation in the GCC countries, will be carried out in three phases.

The grid will allow the transfer of electricity between GCC states to utilise excess capacity and limit the need for new investments in additional power-generation capacity.

Work on the first phase, which includes the interconnection of Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Qatar, using submarine cables, will be completed by the end of the year. This project is called the GCC North Grid.

The trial operations will also start and will continue until January, said a spokesman.

Another project connecting the UAE and Oman, called the South Grid, has already been completed, but is not yet in use.

The final phase, which will include the interconnection of the South and North Grids, will be completed by 2010, said Dr Al Awadhi.

'When the first phase comes on line by the first quarter of 2009, Bahrain will be able to import 600 megawatts per day when needed and up to 1,200 mw during emergencies,' said the spokesman.

GCCIA board members held their third and last meeting in Manama with Canadian engineering-construction firm, SNC-Lavalin, earlier this year.

They discussed the operation and maintenance of the project, the type of protection each country should have and the trading of electricity between the six countries.

'The main objective of the GCC interconnection is the sharing of reserves between the member states without sacrificing individual supply reliability,' said the spokesman.

'We do not have to build additional plants, and the project will also help us reduce the spare capacity by 50 per cent.'

Each member state would be able to import up to the value of its interconnection size, which for Bahrain is 600 mw per day.

The spokesman said GCCIA was in the final stages of awarding a contract for the utilisation of the grid's fibre optic cables for telecommunications purposes. - TradeArabia News Service