Grid Substation In Cambodia
Vannessa Rataj
EDC director-general Keo Rattanak told The Post that the launch of the new substation followed successful tests completed on January 14. Supervision of the project was handled by EDC engineers with assistance from French technical advisers.
Rattanak noted that primary construction of the 230kV transmission line was realised by collaboration between Cambodia and China with the common goal of developing the power grid and electricity sector. The substation was built by the China National Heavy Machinery Corporation (CHMC).
The substation will supply Tbong Khmum province as a whole and also distribute to Prey Veng province through the 230kV transmission line, which will conduct first-phase operations at 115kV. It will also connect to Svay Rieng province via existing 115kV high-voltage transmission lines, according to Ratanak.
Nationwide electricity consumption fell last year by 10 to 12 per cent due to interruptions of industries stemming from the Covid-19 outbreak. The greatest impact on consumption was seen in the garment sector where industrial production accounts for more than 40 per cent of total consumption, according to Jona.
On August 12, in Beijing, China Machine-Building International Corporation (CMIC), affiliated to CNEG, a subsidiary of Sinomach, signed a cooperation agreement with Cambodia's SNTP Company on a grid substation and transmission line project in Sihanoukville, Cambodia.
A number of projects, including the Tatay Hydropower Plant, the trunk lines and substations of Cambodia's national power grid, and an expansion of rural power grids, have been jointly built by CMIC and EDC since 2007, said Lu Wenjun, chairman of CNEG, at the ceremony.
Keo Rottanak, general director of EDC, the state-owned electricity power company in Cambodia, reviewed the cooperation between the two sides over the years. He said that the Tatay Hydropower Plant has become one of the best hydropower projects in Cambodia. Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen has attached great importance to it and inspected the site many times during its construction.
Rottanak was very pleased to see the establishment of a new partnership between CMIC and SNTP, and hoped that the two sides will take the project as a new start and develop diverse cooperation in more fields.
The project will be build in Sihanoukville, Cambodia, and includes the construction of two new GIS substations and a new 230kV and 115kV transmission line of 27 kilometers, as well as the expansion of a substation. The project will greatly relief local power shortages and further boost local economic development.
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The project is aligned with the following impact: adequate and reliable power supply from environmentally sustainable energy sources ensured. The project will have the following outcome: transmission network capacity and stability improved.
Output 2: First utility-scale energy storage system provided. The project will support EDC in designing, procuring, and operating the first utility-scale BESS in Cambodia, capable of storing 16 megawatt-hours, and in analyzing its performance. This is a desirable size to support multiple applications - a standard feature of BESS installations - such as (i) smoothing output at 80% from the phase 1, 60-megawatt (MW) ADB solar park in Kampong Chhnang Province; (ii) providing 0.5 hours of curtailment reserve to address daily power outages; (iii) providing primary frequency control; and (iv) providing congestion relief, which allows to defer upgrades in transformer capacity at Grid Substation 6 (a substation near the ADB solar park site).
Project implementation consultants will complement EDC staff to ensure a high degree of project management efficiency and provide on-the-job training to strengthen transparency and accountability. In addition, EDC will undertake activities that (i) promote inclusion and gender equality in the workplace, (ii) dismantle gender-based stereotypes related to women's participation in energy sector activities and employment, and (iii) inform communities about the safe use of electricity.
Cambodia has achieved sustained economic progress. Cambodia's per capita gross national income grew on average by 7.1% per annum from $950 in 2013 to $1,390 in 2018. Strong economic growth was driven mainly by urban-based industries such as garment exports and tourism, and, more recently, construction and real estate.
However, COVID-19 pandemic threatens to undermine progress. Whereas Cambodia's economy was projected to grow by 6.8% before the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, it is now expected to contract by 5.5% in 2020. It risks pushing an additional 1.3 million people into poverty. The government is implementing an assistance program to mitigate the adverse social and economic impacts. Moreover, financing and constructing needed infrastructure, including those that enables the provision of reliable and sustainable electricity supply, is important to create employment and support the country's post COVID-19 economic recovery. Cambodia aspires to attain middle-income status by 2030.
Government prioritizes energy sector development. In its Socio-Economic Policy Agenda, 2018-2023, the government recognizes the importance of developing the energy sector to increase competitiveness, ensure sustained economic growth, and thereby continue to reduce poverty. Its key policy objectives call for (i) extending the coverage of power supply, (ii) stepping up power reliability by expanding and upgrading the transmission network infrastructure, (iii) further lowering systemwide costs to enable a tariff reduction, and (iv) providing access to electricity from 74.8% in 2019 to 95% of all households by 2030.
However, electricity services are still unreliable with poor quality. One major pressing concern is that the existing transmission infrastructure is reaching capacity. At the end of 2019, Cambodia's transmission infrastructure consisted of 2,267 kilometers (km) of 115 kV and 230 kV transmission lines and 36 substations. Several substations serving the provinces of Phnom Penh, Kampong Chhnang, Kampong Cham, and Takeo are overloaded, resulting in transmission constraints and disproportionate transmission losses (2.3%). A large number of households still do not have access to electricity in Kampong Chhnang (32.3%), Kampong Cham (13.3%), and Takeo (9.2%) provinces, and those with access face frequent and unpredictable power shortages averaging 2 hours per day. It severely hampers the quality of life, erodes Cambodia's competitiveness and effort to diversify into a manufacturing destination. Both domestic firms and foreign investors name inadequate electricity supply, in addition to its high cost, as a main constraint to doing business in Cambodia.
Transmission infrastructure investment requirement of $2.27 billion. EDC, a wholly state-owned limited liability company, is responsible for electricity supply, transmission, and distribution. It does not receive budgetary support from the government and finances power purchases and transmission infrastructure costs from its operational cash flow. Private domestic and foreign investors are encouraged to invest. Several have already done so and operate 41.7% of the total length of 115 kV-230 kV transmission lines (945 km) as well as 10 associated substations (27% of operational substations) under build-own-operate-transfer arrangements of 10 years or more. In addition, Cambodia's rural electricity enterprises represent an important private-sector-based framework for developing, operating, and maintaining the country's distribution network. However, the estimated transmission investment requirement of $2.27 billion exceeds the financing available from any one partner. Concessional financing from development partners is therefore a critical supplement to EDC and private financing, and essential for accelerating the development of power infrastructure that can advance economic growth and poverty alleviation in Cambodia.
Project's role as an important economic and post-COVID-19 enabler. The reinforcement of EDC's infrastructure will enable reliable electricity transmission and thereby enhance economic productivity, competitiveness, and diversification. Also, the construction of four transmission lines and 10 substations under the project will create direct employment for 1,300 people over a period of 2 years, with nearly 27% of the jobs to be created accessible to unskilled workers. Because of the economywide spillover effects, the volume of indirectly generated employment is likely to be much larger. Direct and indirect jobs created in backward supply chain industries will add to household income, which will increase spending and in turn generate more jobs in other sectors. In parallel, however, the energy sector needs to become more inclusive. Gender-based stereotypes related to women's participation in sector activities and employment prevail. Women account for 17% of the 5,584 people employed by EDC and work mainly in accounting, finance, billing, and public relations. Only a few women hold senior and management positions. The project will focus on education and training activities to strengthen inclusion and gender equality at EDC.
Improvements in sector planning and efficiency. Substantial increases in transmission investment can cause small tariff increases, unless they are wholly offset by savings from low-cost generation, fewer transmission and distribution losses, and congestion cost control. EDC and the Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME) are making progress in strengthening sector development planning with direct support from ADB. This includes technical assistance (TA) for project readiness, procurement, and financial management to improve probity, efficiency, and adequate service delivery, and avoid excessive costs. Concessional financing from development partners will also help minimize the impact of the substantial transmission investments on end-user tariffs.
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