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6 February 2008 - The Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) could export electricity to to help meet Europe's peak demand in the winter, when Middle East demand falls, says GCC Interconnection Authority systems operations and maintenance director Ahmed Ali Ebrahim.
"Once the grid is up and running there will be the possibility of selling excess electricity up north, to Iraq, Syria and Turkey and eventually to Europe. That is our vision," he said.
"In this region we are close to abundant supplies of cheap, natural resources and we will have the possibility of exchanging power to meet the different seasonal cycles between Europe and the Middle East.
"In this part of the world the high demand cycle is in the summer, when air-conditioning is needed.
"With the development of more industry in the region, winter demand is increasing but we should still have the potential for oversupply that would allow us to export electricity north, if the infrastructure is in place."
Mr Ebrahim was speaking to the Gulf Daily News at the POWER-GEN Middle East conference and exhibition, which ended at the Bahrain International Exhibition Centre on Wednesday.
Fifty-five per cent of the power grid has already been constructed with a completion date set for December 24 for the grid to be up and running between Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar.
The link to the UAE and Oman could be complete by the end of next year.
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