Tunisian utility Société Tunisienne de l’Electricité et du Gaz (STEG) has signed up French firm Alstom to build a 400 MW combined-cycle power plant in Ghannounch, southern Tunisia.
The turnkey order is valued at €335 million (US $530 million). A separate 12-year operations and maintenance contract was also signed, the details of which were not disclosed.
The plant will be constructed at the site of the old Ghannouch thermal power station and will make use of existing infrastructure such as the seawater intake and discharge systems.
This is the third power plant ordered by STEG from Alstom. The Sousse and Rades combined-cycle units started up in 1994 and 2001, respectively.
Electricity demand in Tunisia is growing by around 6% each year, driven by the country’s rapid economic development, Alstom said.
