Natural Gas Lines to Additional Power Plants in Egypt El Gamil-Damietta Pipeline
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SFG1795 V9 Public Disclosure Authorized Public Disclosure Authorized Public Disclosure Authorized EG-GIZA North Power Project – The Egyptian Natural Gas Company Natural Gas Lines to Additional Power Plants in Egypt El Gamil-Damietta Pipeline Prepared By: ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL Public Disclosure Authorized IMPACT ASSESSMENT February 2017 Final Report Page 1 of 314 ESIA study for EG-GIZA North Power Project – El Gamil – Damietta Pipeline Executive Summary Introduction The proposed project is considered as part of Egypt’s strategy which aims to expand the use of natural gas as a clean source of energy, a goal that will be achieved through delivering natural gas to houses, industrial facilities and power plants. In this regard, the EG-Giza North Power Project was undertaken by the Egyptian Government. The project consists of three main components: Component 1: The Power Plant Component, which is the construction of 2250 MW Combined Cycle Gas Turbine power plant; Component 2: The Construction of transmission lines to connect the power plant to the national grid Component 3: The construction of gas pipelines to strengthen the gas supply network to ensure supply gas to power plant. Component 3 of the project, which involves gas pipeline construction to provide natural gas to North Giza power station, is implemented by the Egyptian Company for Natural Gas (GASCO) with the assistance of the World Bank. This component and was 96% concluded by the end of 2015. After conclusion of the procurement of the Bank financed packages, there were still financial savings from the project that can be utilized by the Government of Egypt. In this regard, the World Bank received formal request from the government of Egypt to utilize these savings to procure pipelines required for upgrading the natural gas network and connecting to new and existing power plants. As the objective of the new gas pipelines connections to the existing and new power stations is to improve the security and efficiency of electricity supply, the additional proposed scope by the Egyptian government is considered to be fully in-line with the original project objectives. The proposed pipelines will also be implemented by GASCO and are composed of 9 pipelines, namely: 1. New Capital - Dahshour gas pipeline (70 km). 2. Dahshour – El Wasta gas pipeline (65 km) 3. El Wasta – Beni Suef gas pipeline (65 km) + gas decompression station (in Beni Sueif Power Station) 4. Sixth of October Power Station (400 meters) + gas decompression station (in 6th of October power station) 5. El Gamel – Damietta gas pipeline (50 km) Page 2 of 314 Page 2 of 314 ESIA study for EG-GIZA North Power Project – El Gamil – Damietta Pipeline 6. El Suez Power Station (3 km) + gas decomposition station (in Suez Thermal Power Station) 7. Soumid import gas pipeline (4 km) 8. El Mahmoudiya Power Station (27 km + 17 km + 7 km) + gas decompression station (in Mahmoudiya Power Station) 9. Damanhour Power Station (2.5 km) + gas decompression station (in Damanhour Power Station) Approach to Study The preparation of the Environmental and Social Impact Assessment is done according to the following approach: Reviewing the available information and documents regarding the project; Reviewing national and international legislations and regulations relevant to the project, including the required governmental permits. Conducting site visits to the project site, to collect the baseline data regarding the current environmental and social situation; Holding a Scoping Session (first public consultation) to engage the community and different stakeholders in the process of identifying the expected impacts; Assessing the potential environmental and social impacts associated with proposed project activities; Developing an outline for the environmental and social management plan for the mitigation of the expected negative impacts and the monitoring activities to ensure compliance with the relevant environmental laws; Holding a Public Consultation Session based on the updated ESIA and RAP studies; Finalizing and submitting the ESIA and RAP studies. Project Overview Pipeline Route The route starts from an existing room on Port Fouad-El Tina gas pipeline which lies near from Petrobel Company. Then the pipeline crosses Port Said - Damietta road, and extends 3 km in the western direction in silty sand soil parallel to Port Said - Damietta road from its southern direction. The pipeline then moves in the south west direction for 2 km to cross Port Said - Damietta road and the International Coastal Road. The pipeline then moves west to extend parallel to the International Coastal Road on the borders of Manzala Lake (with a total distance of 29 km till this point). Page 3 of 314 Page 3 of 314 ESIA study for EG-GIZA North Power Project – El Gamil – Damietta Pipeline After that it extends one km towards west through agricultural land, then it extends in the south west direction parallel to high voltage electricity towers behind Ahmad Shulah farm. Then it intersects with el Salam Canal, and extends in the North West direction parallel again to high voltage electricity towers passing beside El-Khalifa village. After that, it extends towards west to reach El-Hawarany area and intersecting with Mansoura Faraskour road and river Nile near to El-Bostan water treatment plant (with a total length of 21 kms for this segment). The pipeline then reaches to an existing valve room “number 13” on Idku- Damietta gas pipeline in Kafr el Battikh city with total length 50 km. Construction Phase The project will be carried out by a contractor under GASCO’s supervision and control. It is expected that the engineering, procurement and construction phases will collectively take about 15 month. The following activities will be conducted in the construction phase: • Right of Way activities. • Pipe transportation and storage. • Trenching. • Horizontal Directional Drilling (HDD) or boring for the road crossings • Welding and inspection. • Coating and inspection • Wrapping of joints. • Ditching. • Installation of valves. • Tie-ins • Laying fiber-optic cables • Backfilling. • Pigging. • Hydrostatic test. • Dewatering. • Purging& commissioning. • Manufacturing and fittings for valves rooms (including civil, mechanical, and electric components). Operation Phase The operation phase is normally functioned through the central control unit through the SCADA system. Normal maintenance and monitoring work will be performed including patrolling to leakages and potential hazards detection. In case of leak detection, or damage in parts of the pipeline, the damaged part will be isolated and the necessary action will be taken according to the emergency response plan of GASCO. Page 4 of 314 Page 4 of 314 ESIA study for EG-GIZA North Power Project – El Gamil – Damietta Pipeline Project Alternatives The main target of the proposed project is to increase the natural gas supply to El-Borolos Power Plant, in order to help meet the growing national demand. In case of having “No Action”, liquid fuels (Mazout (heavy fuel oil) or Diesel oil) can be used to compensate this shortage despite that there will be more polluting air emissions in case of transporting any of them through vehicles, and even during their burning. In addition, since there is a local shortage in supplying Mazout and Diesel oil, they will be mainly imported, and accordingly increase the load on the national budget especially regarding the current foreign currency problems. Hence, the “No Action” alternative is not accepted. Several alternatives were considered for the route of the line, with the aim of avoiding as much as possible, any residential areas with sensitive receptors, and major crossings of both roads and waterways. Accordingly, the prioritization of certain pipeline route from the environmental and social perspectives focus on shortening the pipeline length and minimizing the associated expected social and environmental impacts. In addition, the choice of the pipeline route put into consideration some technical aspects set by GASCO including facilitating the accessibility of equipment, vehicles and personnel to the pipeline site during the construction and maintenance activities by placing the path as much as possible near to paved roads. The presence of residential areas and some factories on the coastal line prevented the possibility of choosing the coastal line as a possible route. The chosen route passes adjacent to existing electricity poles to minimize the opportunities of third party trespass on the gas pipeline. For the fish farms located along the pipeline route, the pipeline will pass on the border of the farms to minimize any negative effect on them. Hence, the chosen pipeline route achieves the environmental and social targets, and at the same time aligns with GASCO’s strategy which aims at choosing routes already containing existing infrastructure (paved roads) and minimizing intersection with residential areas. Positive Environmental and Social Impacts Implementation of the proposed project is expected to lead to a number of positive social and economic benefits, for example: The project is expected to result in the creation of job opportunities in the construction phase, both directly and indirectly; Support the expansion of power generation projects; Expanding power generation will dramatically enhance the national electricity grid; Expanding the natural gas network will positively provide an energy source to local industries which will indirectly create job opportunities; Expanding