Etihad Water and Electricity (EtihadWE) has invited consulting firms to register their interest in participating in the tender process for a techno-economic feasibility study of a proposed UAE–India undersea power interconnector.

The utility said in a statement to MEED that firms may apply as single entities or as part of a consortium.

The study aims to deliver a comprehensive, bankable feasibility package assessing the long-term technical, economic, and market viability of power exchange between the UAE and India.

This will include physical route surveys, evaluation of energy-exchange scenarios, cost–benefit analysis, grid-impact assessments, and optimisation of interconnector capacity through sensitivity studies.

According to the utility, the scope of work includes the developing feasible interconnection options and defining design parameters and capacity.

It will cover preliminary and survey-supported routing for the subsea cablea and the identification of landing points and onshore transmission links.

The study will also provide refined cost estimates, supply-chain and execution timelines, legal and regulatory reviews, commercial frameworks, risk identification, and support for the preparation of draft tender documents and technical specifications.

In addition, it will outline bankable financing, ownership, and operational structures, including revenue-maximisation approaches, and provide an implementation and operations schedule.

The deadine for bid submissions is 5pm on 31 January.

EtihadWE has requested interested parties to express their interest by email to [email protected], using the subject line: “Expression of Interest – UAE–India Subsea Interconnection.”