Hyundai awarded $725 million 500kV HVDC Transmission Line Project

Hyundai Engineering & Construction Co.,Ltd. signed a contract with the state-owned Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) in Riyadh for a New 500kV HVDC Transmission Line Project.

The value of the contract is USD 725 million.

The project involves constructing a total of 1,089 km of ultra-high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission lines from the PP14 power plant in Riyadh to the coastal region of Kudmi in the Southwest.

Hyundai E&C will be responsible for Section 1, which spans 369 km and includes a challenging segment crossing mountain ranges over 3,000 meters. The construction is expected to be completed by January 2027.

This project was awarded under a lump-sum turnkey basis,

The HVDC transmission technology involves converting alternating current (AC) to high-voltage direct current (DC) for transmission, reducing energy loss and improving efficiency over long distances, making it a prominent next-generation transmission solution.

Since 2021, Hyundai Construction has been pioneering the HVDC era in Saudi Arabia through projects like the 500kV transmission line from Medina to Tabuk to Aqaba and the 525kV Neom-Yanbu transmission line project awarded last year. This new transmission line is Saudi Arabia’s first HVDC double-circuit line, with a maximum transmission capacity of 4 GW.