«If we do not reach the major consumption centers of Europe, we will not be able to export the energy we produce“, emphasized Vice President and General Manager of Technology, System Development and Strategy of ADMIE Mr. Ioannis Margaris when placing it in the 6th Infrastructure & Transport Conference.
Mr. Margaris explained that the green energy which is already produced in Greece is multiples of the quantities traded through existing interconnectionsgiven the congestion observed in the networks of the neighboring Balkan countries, creating the need for the development of new and larger international energy corridors to the countries of central Europe.
He emphasized that Greece today is at a critical crossroads regarding its energy mix as its green production potential far exceeds domestic demand. As he said, the installed capacity of RES units of all technologies is now close to 12 GWthe Operator has awarded Connection Offers for an additional 15 GW of green projects while future planning includes the integration of additional capacity from offshore wind farms as well.
Mr. Margaris referred to key challenges for the rapid maturation and implementation of international interconnections such as the need for coordination between many involved bodies (states, administrators, regulatory authorities), the financing of projects and also the licensing which can prove to be particularly time-consuming, citing the example of Germany which delayed for a decade to license the new domestic electric axis between the North Sea and the southern part of the country.
The implementation of the Greece-Cyprus-Israel interconnection is closer than ever
Asked about the Greece-Cyprus-Israel interconnectionthe Vice President of ADMIE stated that the implementation of the project “is closer than when”. He reminded that ADMIE has been supporting the project on a technical level for several years while in the last year it has also submitted an offer for its shareholding in the implementing body EuroAsia Interconnector, at a rate of 25% to 33%. He also added that ADMIE recently started looking for additional investorsincluding an Israeli investment fund, emphasizing the special interest that Israel has expressed, in the absence of its electrical connections with neighboring states in the Middle East.
Mr. Margaris also mentioned that studies are progressing for the design of the equipment that should be installed in Cyprusanalyzing the demanding technical characteristics of the interconnection, such as the length and great depths of the cables, which in some places even exceed 2,500 meters above sea level.
Referring to the difficulties of the projects, he said that both the Greece-Cyprus-Israel interconnection project and the Greece-Egypt interconnection pose design challenges but also for the manufacturers, underlining once again that these large projects will not have substantial added value if we do not manage to export the green energy produced in the South to the North.
#Direct #electrical #connections #central #Europe #utilization #green #energy
