Dessau-Soprin Inc. has received the contract for construction supervision on the Electric Interconnection System of Central American Countries, known by its Spanish acronym SIEPAC. On Oct. 31, Empresa Propietaria de la Red (EPR), the owner, will receive proposals for construction. It plans to award the contract in February 2006.

The $280-million project will link the electrical grids of six countries, from Guatemala to Panama, with a 1,830-kilometer-long, 230-kV transmission line interconnected with 15 substations, and with a capacity of up to 300 MW (ENR 11/29/04). Under its contract, valued at about $20 million, Laval, Quebec-based Dessau-Soprin will supervise all aspects of the project, including contractors’ design and engineering, quality assurance for equipment, application of environmental protection measures and the installation and activation of the transmission line and its substations.

Dessau-Soprin’s project headquarters will be in San José, Costa Rica, which also is EPR’s base. Regional offices will be located in each country crossed by the line. Dessau-Soprin will employ about 200 people on the project. Construction is scheduled to take three years, says a Dessau-Soprin spokesman.

SIEPAC is aimed at limiting power shortages, reducing operating costs, optimizing the use of Central America’s abundant hydroelectric power, promoting the development of a competitive electricity market and attracting foreign investment.