New Delhi: Saudi Arabia has shown interest in enhanced cooperation with India on extra-high-voltage electricity transmission systems. Saudi Arabia has sought cooperation in managing renewable energy integration and addressing the increasing power demand from data centres, the power ministry said on Monday.
The discussion took place during a virtual meeting between power secretary Pankaj Agarwal and Saudi Arabia's assistant minister of energy for electricity affairs, Nasser Al-Qahtani, to review the progress of India-Saudi Arabia electrical interconnection initiatives. Extra-high-voltage transmission systems generally operate at 220 kV and above and carry large quantities of electricity over long distances with lower transmission losses.
During the meeting, Saudi Arabia sought greater technical cooperation to tackle the challenges of integrating a higher share of renewable energy into the grid. The discussions also covered ways to meet the growing electricity needs of data centres and changes needed in grid codes as power systems evolve.
Grid codes lay down the technical and operational requirements for connecting to and operating electricity networks. The two countries will continue discussions on the proposed electrical interconnection and take forward cooperation in other areas.