Danish-German group signs deal to boost power output

Denmark and HSBC will fund $350 million project

A contract for the construction of new electric generators at the Zouk and Jieh power plants was signed with a Danish-German consortium. In September 2012, Danish engineering and contracting company BWSC and German Man Diesel had won a tender for building two reciprocating engines to boost output at the two plants by some 260 MW. The new plants will run on both fuel oil and natural gas.

The project’s cost is estimated at around $350 million. The Danish government and HSBC bank have offered to fund the project. “Denmark's official export credit agency (EKF) and HSBC proposed granting the government a soft loan covering 85 percent of the project’s cost,” a source at the Danish embassy said. The source said the loan has an interest rate of around 4.6 percent and a maturity of five years, with a six-month grace period from the date of the initiation of works. Once work begins, the project should be completed within 12 to 18 months.