June 20th, 2013 was a significant day for a group of 40-odd men working in Sudan, when the first overseas EPC power project being executed by an Indian company reached an important milestone of being synchronized with the National grid of Sudan. I gave a long and partly philosophical account, including the where-and-what of this project in an earlier post on my other blog here.
This project has now been going on for an unusually long 7 years. While delays are an undeniable part of any project of such scale, we have had some extraordinary ones out here. The reasons may be as diverse as the Indian peacock's color but frankly, that's the part nobody wants to hear.
Trail of Delays:
Out of the last 7 years, the oldest that any of these 40 people have been here is for 3 years. That is when most of the visible work started. For the first 4 years, most of the work that was done involved turning this 100 hectare of open desert area into a place with excavations, foundations upto 10 meters in depth and other basic civil structures.
In the words of one of the early civil engineers posted here, the only structure in the 2 sq km area was BHEL office while the rest was a flat red soil plain where small dust storms would whirl around in the heat of the day.
Those were the days when the store sheds were made ready, boundaries and fencings were made and concrete foundations were built. Once into the project, the major civil contractor had to be changed and later it raised arbitration against the company. It was realized that cement had to be shipped at exorbitant price from India and this had not been taken into account. Its no use to go into details regarding civil-drawing changes that our site civil engineers always rue about and that came into light only after many of the structures had already been built. Such planning, engineering and supply-related issues plagued the site day-in and day-out.
Anyways, I would rather not fall into the quagmire of expressing my distress at various reasons that would explain the delays. It would take unnecessary space and deserves a far more professional analysis than my present emotionally-charged condition warrants.
Anyways, I would rather not fall into the quagmire of expressing my distress at various reasons that would explain the delays. It would take unnecessary space and deserves a far more professional analysis than my present emotionally-charged condition warrants.
A New Day
Today is the day, when after numerous hurdles and disappointments, the team here has contributed to the electric grid for the first time. From a flat piece of land with no water and no fuel (Water was brought here over a 13 km pipeline after a Kilometer long channel was dug into the White Nile), we today have a plant ready for electricity production.
It cannot be denied that projects of this scale and hugely bigger ones are built by companies the world over with a better record of time-compliance. At the same time, it can also not be denied that the constraints within which people had to work here and steps taken to overcome them can be the subject of a full debate and a book.
The confidence from customer and consultant had taken a beating in the last six years but part of the faith was visibly reposed yesterday when the 165 tonne turbine rotor rolled onto a speed of 3000 RPM driven by superheated steam. (video here) .
A lot is to be done to bring the plant onto full load after the availability of crude oil (to be supplied by the customer). With the separation of South Sudan, the crude oil fields have gone to them and the siblings have failed to reach a consensus on the transit-costs.
It cannot be denied that projects of this scale and hugely bigger ones are built by companies the world over with a better record of time-compliance. At the same time, it can also not be denied that the constraints within which people had to work here and steps taken to overcome them can be the subject of a full debate and a book.
The confidence from customer and consultant had taken a beating in the last six years but part of the faith was visibly reposed yesterday when the 165 tonne turbine rotor rolled onto a speed of 3000 RPM driven by superheated steam. (video here) .
A lot is to be done to bring the plant onto full load after the availability of crude oil (to be supplied by the customer). With the separation of South Sudan, the crude oil fields have gone to them and the siblings have failed to reach a consensus on the transit-costs.
Days to Come
Bottom line is that seven years and five construction managers later the target is now in site. We hope to begin the work on remaining three units and move onto full loading of the first. Then there would be the trial-run and final handing over.
There are aspects to this project that I would like to discuss, possibly in future posts. Subjects I have in mind involve the plight and politics of the over 2000 indian workers under the sub-contractor, Economic implications to our company, Implications to Indian diplomacy, Contribution to Sudan economy, Reasons for delays and blame-games thereon and last but not the least, personal travails and thoughts of people living here. I think these thoughts may find echo with anybody who has worked in such projects. The target readers for these posts are mainly people who work in conditions similar to ours.
There are aspects to this project that I would like to discuss, possibly in future posts. Subjects I have in mind involve the plight and politics of the over 2000 indian workers under the sub-contractor, Economic implications to our company, Implications to Indian diplomacy, Contribution to Sudan economy, Reasons for delays and blame-games thereon and last but not the least, personal travails and thoughts of people living here. I think these thoughts may find echo with anybody who has worked in such projects. The target readers for these posts are mainly people who work in conditions similar to ours.
It chiefly consists of those who are executing projects for Indian Public Sector Enterprises that are making the reluctant transformation towards efficient management and new-world HR policies. Young as well as experienced men who are part of the Indian growth story at a level so fundamental that most never hear about it.
If you are one among us and reading these posts then I would love to know your views and comments. Discussions are welcome (well that's the whole point behind this) but please refrain from getting personal. It is only through constructive criticism and discussions that we can arrive at meaningful lessons from our shared experiences, lessons that may someday help us in making a difference to things we care for.
If you are one among us and reading these posts then I would love to know your views and comments. Discussions are welcome (well that's the whole point behind this) but please refrain from getting personal. It is only through constructive criticism and discussions that we can arrive at meaningful lessons from our shared experiences, lessons that may someday help us in making a difference to things we care for.
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