Three tenders up for grabs for second Malta-Italy interconnector

InterConnect Malta, owned by the Maltese government, has issued three new tenders for the second electrical interconnector between Malta and Italy. This comes less than a month after the project had received final approval.

The IC2 interconnector will consist of a new ~122-kilometer-long 225 MW HVAC electrical cable interconnection between the Terna substation at Ragusa, Sicily, and the Enemalta terminal station in Maghtab, to be laid in parallel to the existing HVAC cable link which was commissioned in 2015.

The overall interconnector cable link will be composed of a land cable in Sicily approximately 21 kilometers long, a three-core submarine cable approximately 99 kilometers, long, and a 2-kilometer land cable in Malta.

One of the new tenders is inviting interested parties to apply to undertake owner’s engineer activities for the entirety of the project.

The other two tenders are for the supply and installation of a 132 kV variable shunt reactor at Maghtab terminal station and the provision of insurance advisory services to Interconnect Malta in relation to the interconnector and utility-scale battery energy storage facilities.

These tenders are part of a series of open procurement procedures and follow the previous tenders for various components of the project, such as tenders for the procurement and installation of the land cable in Malta and Italy, the manufacture and laying of the subsea portion, the 220 kV shunt reactors and transformer in both countries, the HV switchgear, control, civil works and fire protection equipment in Italy, as well as the installation of walk-through culverts in Malta.

To remind, the interconnector obtained its final approval last month after securing the permit from the Italian Ministry for the Environment and Energy Security (MASE).

This second Malta-Sicily cable link is part of the Maltese Government’s future energy strategy for meeting the 2030 climate and energy targets and the longer-term decarbonization objectives.

The project, co-financed by the European Union under the European Regional Development Fund 2021-2027, is expected to be commissioned in 2026.