US-based GE has been awarded a $400m contract to provide and install 14 substations in Iraq.

The GE Power division US firm will install substations to connect power plants spread across the areas of Ninawa, Salah al-Din, Al-Anbar, Karbala, Baghdad, Qadisiyyah and Basra to the national grid.

GE Power has previously provided power generation equipment for some of the power plants that the substations will be connected to.

In January, GE was awarded contracts for more than $1.4bn worth of power projects in Iraq.

Under the orders, GE will add an additional 2GW of power to the national grid and ensure the delivery of 1.75GW of power from existing infrastructure to the national grid.

The work will include installing turbines and commissioning of the Samawa and Dhi Qar power stations, adding an additional 1.5GW to the grid.

The first phase will involve the installation of four 9E gas turbines by 2018, followed by the combined-cycle conversion for the second phase. GW will also provide the advanced heat recovery steam generators (HRSG) and steam turbines for the second phase. The US firm will also be the EPC contractor for the plants.

GE will add an additional 580MW of electricity to the national grid through the rehabilitation and upgrading of four existing power plants. The firm will ensure the continued supply of 1.75GW of existing capacity through the maintenance of its 9E turbines at six different power plants across the country.

In 2016, GE added 700MW of additional capacity to Iraq’s grid through a fast-track programme, after signing contracts worth more than $1bn in January 2016.

GE has assisted Baghdad with securing financing from regional and international financial organisations for its programme to upgrade its power infrastructure.

Read more: Firm to install new substation in Iraq