Negotiations for the planned $4.4bn Hamrawein coal plant in Egypt are ongoing, with agreements expected to be finalised in March for the 6.6GW coal-fired power plant.

MEED reported in June last year that the Egyptian Electricity Holding company (EEHC) had selected the consortium of China’s Shanghai Electric, Dong Fang and the local Hassan Allam Construction as the preferred bidder for the coal-fired power project.

The consortium is now undergoing final negotiations for the contract and financing for the 6GW Hamrawein plant, which will be the largest single-site power project in the region. The project will be developed under an engineering, procurement and construction plus finance (EPC+F) model.

MEED reported in February last year that the client had received technical and commercial proposals from three consortiums for the proposed project.

Commercial proposals contained an EPC offer and a levelised cost of electricity (LCOE) tariff.

The consortium comprising Shanghai Electric, Dong Fang (both based in China) and the local Hassan Allam Construction submitted the lowest EPC price of $4.4bn; US giant GE submitted an offer of $5.8bn; and a consortium of Japan’s Mitsubishi Hitachi Power System (MHPS) and local firms Orascom Construction and El-Sewedy submitted an EPC proposal of $7bn.

However, for the levelised cost of electricity (LCOE), the MHPS-led consortium submitted the lowest figure of $cents4.5 per kWh ($c/kWh). The Shanghai Electric-led consortium submitted a LCOE offering of 5.4$c/kWh, with GE submitting a tariff of 7$c/kWh.

The Hamrawein scheme is one of a handful of major coal projects that Egypt is seeking to develop in the coming years, designed to meet the growing demand for electricity while diversifying fuel sources used for power generation.

MEED reported earlier in 2018 that EEHC was continuing negotiations with the UAE’s Al-Nowais Investments, through its subsidiary AMEA Power, for a planned coal-fired independent power project (IPP) at Ayoun Moussa.

The project, scheduled to have a first phase capacity of 2,640MW, has been under negotiation since 2015, when Al-Nowais signed the initial agreements.