Dubai Electricity & Water Authority (Dewa) has invited consultants to submit proposals for a contract to provide supervisory services for an electrical interconnection project between Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

The client has set a bid deadline date of 13 June for consultants to submit prices.

In 2013, the UAE government announced it was planning to integrate the grids of the four authorities, Dewa, Abu Dhabi Department of Energy (formerly known as Abu Dhabi Water & Electricity Authority (Adwea), Sharjah Water & Electricity Authority (Sewa) and Federal Electricity & Water Authority (Fewa), that are responsible for supplying electricity across the seven emirates as part of the Emirates National Grid (ENG) initiative.

The federal government stated that the ENG would result in financial savings as a result of the reduction in installed reserve capacity across the individual utility systems. It will also enable the commercial transfer of electricity between the power authorities.

Abu Dhabi and Dubai are also planning to implement a water connection between the two emirates.

In August last year, the two emirates signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for strategic water connections between the two emirates and exchange of potable water in emergencies.

In a released statement, Saeed Mohammed al-Tayer, managing director and CEO of Dewa, said that agreement was part of the strategic objectives of the UAE federal government, and in line with the recommendations of the UAE Water Security Strategy 2036.

Al-Tayer said that Adwea (now Department of Energy) and Dewa first started to study possible options for a water interconnection between the two emirates in 2007. Under the terms of the MoU, Dewa and the Department of Energy will carry out a feasibility study for water interconnection, and agree on a consultancy services tender which will be let to the market.