ALGIERS -- General Electric Co. (IW 500/6) has won a $2.2 billion contract to provide turbines for six power plants in Algeria, state energy giant Sonatrach announced on Sunday.
"GE has won the contract to provide the turbines with a total capacity of 8,400 megawatts for a sum of $2.2 billion," Sonatrach chief Nourredine Bouterfa told state radio.
Algeria plans to build six new power plants with capacities of between 1,200 and 1,600 megawatts each by 2017.
Bouterfa said the GE deal was part of Algeria's efforts to construct its own power stations, buying the turbines only from foreign suppliers and not the complete plant.
He said the new plants would allow Algeria to put an end to the frequent power cuts that have hit consumers during periods of peak demand, particularly in the heat of the summer.
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2013
