WORK HAS begun on the electrification of the Coega Industrial Development zone in preparation for the first investors. On Monday, February 11, the Coega Development Corporation (CDC) published a request for proposals notice. The advertisement invited contractors and suppliers of high and medium-voltage bulk electrical supply infrastructure to submit pre-qualification documentation. This infrastructure will service the Coega IDZ and port of Ngqura. The contract is worth around R130-million, according to the Project Manager, specialised infrastructure at the Coega Development Corporation, Dr Peter Inman. It will provide high-voltage electricity directly to the bigger users of power, and medium-voltage supplies for use by other factories, offices, shops and for services like street lighting and traffic lights. The CDC is working closely with the Nelson Mandela metro and with Eskom in the implementation of the Coega IDZ electricity grid, according to Inman. Eskom has committed itself to a R1,85-billion upgrade of the power supply to the Nelson Mandela Metro in order to meet the additional demand of the IDZ and the projected increase of demand of the Metro. The upgrade will benefit the whole Nelson Mandela metro. Trade and Industry minister Alec Erwin told a news conference called to announce the awarding of a provisional operator’s licence to the Coega Development Corporation that the investment by Eskom was necessary to allow further industrial development in the Nelson Mandela metro. The present power supply could not cope with significantly greater demand. Coega has proven to be the catalyst for the investment. According to Dr Inman, some of the investors interested in the zone would each use “up to triple the amount of electricity consumed by Port Elizabeth”. Inman says the bulk supply will include some of the most modern 132 000 volt (high voltage) and 11 000 volt (medium voltage) systems. “What we are looking at is intelligent systems which are self-sustaining, low-maintenance, and offer high levels of service. These are the international standards demanded by the potential investors.” The CDC’s decision to call for proposals for prequalification is also in line with international trends. “We are talking about very sophisticated infrastructure. The prequalification bids will tell us just what equipment and what solutions are available in the market-place. “Our tender document will then be able to reflect as many of these solutions as possible, rather than being based around a single conventional solution. The pre-tender process also helps us to draw up a list of preferred suppliers. There is a good reason for this. Companies have to spend a lot of time and money preparing tender documents for a project like this. The pre-tender process narrows the field down to those companies which are competent and experienced.” There will be opportunities for less experienced electrical contractors later in the development of investor projects in the zone, he adds. “The CDC has a real commitment to empowerment and to keeping as much business as possible within the metro and province. The installation and operation of these extremely high voltage systems is very specialised work and we are hoping to source national suppliers with a very strong Eastern Cape base. Once we start working with lower voltages and the installation of the grid within the zone, we will be able to use local and emerging contractors,” he says. Companies submitting prequalification bids will also be asked to include plans to reduce the visual impact of the high voltage overhead lines. “At this voltage it is prohibitively expensive to put all the cables underground. There is also a safety aspect – you don’t want a contractor to accidentally dig into a 132 000 volt line,” he says. “So, what we are trying to do is to use overhead line designs that look more attractive than the usual power lines you see draped around industrial zones and big cities. We will keep away from the skylines, and we will go under the N2 to provide power to the Port of Ngqura.”