According to UN, 770 million people live without access to electricity, mostly in Africa and Asia. Bringing power to these people is as much a part of the Energy Transition as reducing harmful emissions as demand continues to rise significantly.
For this reason, we ask three employees in different regions to share their #EnergyStories and showcase how Siemens Energy is supporting through its sustainable energy solution offerings and energy roadmaps.
Ultimately, this Stories highlight why there is an urgent need to prioritize energy access regardless of our current location in the world. Even though energy realities of all may vary from different regions, collectively, energy is and will continue to be a major driver for social economic growth and a better future for all.
Africa Project - Atinkou, Côte d'Ivoire
Addressing unplanned power outages was one of the main challenges in Ivory Coast, particularly during seasons where the hydro supply was limited due to lack of water, which led to frequent power cuts and limited generated capacity to meet the required energy demand.
To ensure security of supply and support the region’s vision of clean and affordable energy, Siemens Energy signed an agreement with Spanish EPC contractor TSK to provide highly efficient energy technology and services to Atinkou, a new combined cycle power plant built in Jacqueville, in the south of the Country.
For this power plant, which will have an installed capacity of 390 MW, Siemens Energy has provided the first highly efficient F-class gas turbine of the Sub-Saharan region and the most efficient natural gas fired power plant. The scope includes one SGT5-4000F gas turbine and one SST5-3000 steam turbine, along with a generator, a condenser and an SPPA-T3000 control system. After commissioning, Siemens Energy will also be responsible for the equipment’s maintenance through a 12-year long-term program.
The Atinkou plant should produce 3000mwh of energy per year, which will be enough for one million homes. Through our solutions in this project, we contribute to economic growth by providing low power generation costs, long intervals between inspections, and a service-friendly designed not only to meet the Country needs of reliable supply in electricity, but also support Ivory Coast´s target to become a regional energy hub for West Africa.
Egypt Megaproject
Back in 2010, Egypt’s main challenge was to ensure stable energy supply for its growing population. Blackouts and power outages, especially during summer, affected residential and industrial areas. As a consequence, the energy system not only had to be stabilized, but it was also required a substantial expansion and investment to ensure a reliable power infrastructure that could foster long-term economic development.
In 2017, after only 18 months from the megaproject’s signature, an initial 4.8 GW were fed into the Egyptian grid, constituting a 10 percent surplus over the 4.4 GW of early power contractually promised by Siemens Energy. By completing the megaproject in around 27.5 months after its financial close, Siemens Energy managed to set a new worldwide benchmark for the execution of fast-track mega power projects.
To power the country’s economic transformation, Siemens Energy has successfully managed to boost Egypt’s power generation capacity over 40 percent by connecting 14.4 gigawatts to the Egyptian national grid. This is enough power to supply over 40 million Egyptians with reliable electricity and provide a much-needed power to different industrial sectors.
In addition to the training of 600 power plant engineers and technicians, an occupational training center is being established in cooperation with the German Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development to provide industry-specific and on-the-job training for 5,500 Egyptian engineers and technicians over four years.
Energizing Bolivia Project
Bolivia and Siemens Energy are improving the access to electrical power for its growing population and developing their economy with the expansion of three thermal power plants: Termoeléctrica del Sur, Termoléctrica de Warnes and Termoléctrica Entre Ríos.
The power plants provide a reliable energy supply for the country's population and lay the groundwork for future exports. The expansion phase added more than one gigawatt to the local power grid. The installed power generation capacity of Bolivia’s National Interconnected System was increased by around 50%.
The project is a result of an overarching collaboration effort that covered thousands of miles. The equipment’s arrived from all over the world, including Sweden, China, Germany, Italy, Indonesia, Vietnam and Brazil. Management and logistics were done in Sweden for the initial phase and in Austria for the expansion phase.
As part of its commitment to supporting Bolivia's efforts to improve access to electricity for its growing population, Siemens Energy also build a new, modern energy service and training center. It is designed to provide specialized high-tech traditional and digital services to energy customers in Bolivia and South America. Siemens Energy invested over $20 million in the facility, and is expected to employ approximately 130 people.
