Terna's Chief Executive Officer, Mateo del Fante, told the Italian media that the connection with Montenegro via a submarine power cable remains the company's priority.
Published: Source: CDM
Furthermore, Del Fante described our country as a bridge that will enable Italy to enter the Balkan energy market.
Terna's focus regarding interconnections with foreign countries will be on better energy connectivity with Corsica and the Balkans. The transmission network from Tuscany, as del Fante pointed out, dates back to the 1960s and has limited capacity, which is why an alternative in the form of a better supply is being sought.
When it comes to the Balkans, the CEO of Terna is clear – the priority is the project they are jointly implementing with the Montenegrin Transmission System Operator. According to del Fante, the energy market in our country is small, but Montenegro serves as a bridge to the Balkan market.
"We are monitoring the development of the network in the Balkans and, as a partner of CGES, we advocate for increased interconnectivity in the region," said del Fante.
Enough energy
The construction of the subsea power cable, with transmission lines in Montenegro and Italy, is set to be completed in 2018. This project has met with opposition from the opposition and some NGOs in the Abruzzo region and in Montenegro. When asked whether Montenegro produces enough energy for the cable's capacity, Terna previously told the media that the transmission line will transport energy from the entire Balkans. They pointed out that Romania and Bulgaria have long had a surplus of energy for export, and that Serbia is now joining them.
'Regardless of future new power plants, there is already enough energy in the Balkans for export, or rather for transport via this cable, Terna has announced.' The cable will, like all power lines in the world, transport energy which, in accordance with market principles, will be offered at the most acceptable price. The cable should be seen as a motorway, which is used by vehicles of all kinds," they said at Terna.
The project to connect Italy and Montenegro with a power cable will cost almost a billion euros. Italy's Terna is obliged to provide 80 per cent of the necessary funds for the project's implementation, while the Montenegrin Transmission System will provide 100 million euros, which is necessary to build a substation in Lastva and a power line to Pljevlja. Montenegro, Terna and CGES, 25 January 2011. on 25 January 2011, concluded a project coordination agreement, which provides that the state undertakes to secure for the Italian company and its subsidiaries the rights to state land, including maritime property, necessary for the implementation of the part of the submarine cable located on the territory of our state.
Connecting with Serbia and BiH
An energy connection is planned from Montenegro to Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, while it remains uncertain whether Albania will agree to connect to the energy cable between Montenegro and Italy, as they have announced they will attempt to implement a project that would connect them directly to Italy across the sea.
The feasibility study for the 400 kV interconnection between Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina has shown the justification for the implementation of this project. The study was financed by the European Union and covered the development of the planned 400-kilovolt interconnection between Bajina Bašta in Serbia, Pljevlja in Montenegro, and Višegrad in Bosnia and Herzegovina.