Ethiopia–Kenya HVDC interconnector power transmission test successfully completed: EEP

Addis Ababa, November 8, 2022 (FBC) – The Ethiopian Electric Power (EEP) has announced that the testing of transferring power to the Ethio-Kenya high voltage direct current converter station and transmission line project was successfully completed.

The project manager, Tewodros Ayalew, confirmed the trial of transmitting power on the 500 KV high power transmission line project in Ethio-Kenya has officially started.

He mentioned that various electro-mechanical devices and equipment installed on the project, as well as the communication data signal, were being checked and tested at different times.

According to EEP, the success of the test work is an indication that the power connection with Kenya will fully commence soon.

Tewodros pointed out that it was able to connect the signal to the Kenyan network by sending a communication signal a few days ago.

The Ethio-Kenya transmission line and converter station project was built at a cost of $334.5 million, of which $214.5 million was spent on the construction of the converter station and ground electrode line, whereas $120 million was spent on the transmission line.

The project’s senior project engineer, Haile-Mariam Moges, said that this project, whose construction work began in 2016, has the capacity to transmit up to 2,000 megawatts of electricity.

He indicated that the construction work of the transmission line was completed in the spring of 2018 and the converter station in December 2021.

The construction of the Ethio-Kenya 500 kV transmission line was built by China Electric Power Equipment and Technology Company (CET). Meanwhile, the converter station and the ground electrode line works were built by Siemens.

In the Ethio-Kenya 500 KV transmission line project built by Ethiopia, 994 line-bearing towers were installed and 440 kilometers of power transmission line and data signal transmission cables were laid.