South Korean Engineering Company to Construct Yemen's First Windfarm

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Yemen suffers from daily power outages, despite an abundance of oil and gas reserves. After unification in the early 1990s, but before the civil war in 1994, Yemen's Ministry of Electricity and Energy constructed more than a dozen power plants to generate about 1,100 megawatts (MW) of electricity for the national grid. These power plants still generate the same amount and have fallen into decay due to lack of upgrades or maintenance. No power stations have been built since the 1990s, though Yemen's power demand increases 9 to 10 MW every year. By last summer, electricity demand rose to 1,600 MW, and electricity bills recently increased by 50%.

In recent months, the Yemeni government has begun coming clean about the status of the energy sector. Absence of power laws within the energy sector have allowed for corruption and organizational dysfunction within the Ministry of Electricity and Energy. New laws have recently come into effect that are directed at changing how the energy sector is handled, starting at the heart of the ministry, which has predicted that the demand for power will increase to 5,000 MW by 2025.

The laws will not only unite the private and public sectors to overcome the electricity shortage, but also will clearly define the Ministry's responsibilities. First and foremost, the ministry will be responsible for the creation of three separate corporations that will manage generation, distribution and transmission of electricity. This will also include the management of oil and natural gas and the development of renewable energy, including solar and wind-generated electricity.

Many power projects are currently being pushed through the planning phases, including that of Yemen's first wind power station. Shinhan Engineering and Construction Company Limited (SEO:005450) (Seongnam, South Korea), which has also been in talks with the Yemeni government regarding the joint construction of oil and gas refineries, announced in October 2009 that it would be taking responsibility for the construction of Yemen's first windfarm. Yemen presents a great potential for the development of wind and solar energy. Shinhan plans to begin construction on the $150 million windfarm late next year. The windfarm, planned to be built near Al Mukha in Ta'izz, should be completed in 2012 and will boost the country's power generation capacity by 60 MW.

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