OETC launches major tender for subsea power transmission
Oman Electricity Transmission Company (OETC), part of the Nama Group, has launched a major tender for a subsea power cable installation in Oman.
Image for illustration purposes.
Oman, Muscat: Oman Electricity Transmission Company (OETC), part of the Nama Group, has launched a major tender for a subsea power cable installation in Oman.
The project aims to provide cost-effective electricity from the national grid to Masirah Island, off the country’s eastern coast and is seen as crucial to meeting growing energy demands, improving system resiliency, and reducing reliance on diesel resources, aligning with net-zero targets while cutting costs.
The subsea power cable, stretching 33 kilometers beneath the Masirah Channel, will connect to a 132 kV overhead transmission line running 60 kilometers from Mahout on the mainland to the island’s coast. Expected to be operational by late 2026, the project will replace diesel-generated electricity on Masirah Island with grid power increasingly sourced from solar and wind.
Currently, the Rural Areas Electricity Company (Tanweer), a Nama Group subsidiary, supplies energy to the island. However, with significant infrastructure and economic development planned for the island, electricity demand is projected to rise significantly. International companies are expected to compete for the subsea power cable contract, given its uniqueness in Oman.
OETC has also called for bids to construct a 132/33kV grid station on Masirah Island, which will connect to a similar station on the mainland at Mahout upon completion of the subsea cable. The project’s feasibility is enabled by OETC’s Rabt project, a $1 billion initiative to link Oman’s northern grids with Dhofar.
Source: Utilities ME