TSO chiefs meet to discuss EuroAfrica Interconnector

Chiefs of the Greek and Egyptian transmission system operators (TSOs) have come together to discuss the EuroAfrica Interconnector that will connect the two countries.

Manos Manousakis, chairman and CEO of Greece’s Independent Power Transmission Operator (IPTO), and Sabah Mashaly, chairman of the Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company (EETC), held a working meeting at IPTO headquarters on 13 April.

The TSO heads and competent administrative teams discussed technical matters, as well as the next steps for the implementation of the project that will upgrade the position of the two countries on the international energy maps and accelerate the development of renewable energy sources in the wider region.

The EuroAfrica Interconnector is a 2,000 MW capacity electricity link that will connect the national electricity grids of Egypt, Cyprus and Greece through a 1,396-kilometer subsea HVDC cable.

The project will start near Damietta in Egypt and take the subsea route to Cyprus where it will connect at the Kofinou station. From there it will head west and take a subsea route to Korakia point in Crete, Greece. Its lowest subsea point will be 3,000 meters below sea level.

The Egypt-Cyprus part of the project will be 498 kilometers long and is expected to be commissioned this year, while the Cyprus-Crete connection will be 898 kilometers long and will be commissioned in December 2023.

EuroAfrica Interconnector, as the official project promoter and developer, will finance the construction of the electricity interconnection between Egypt, Cyprus, Crete and Attica with an initial transmission capacity of 1,000 MW, with the financial cost of Stage 1 estimated at €2.5 billion.

The project is set to end the energy isolation of Cyprus as an EU member state. Cyprus is the last member of the EU which remains fully isolated without any electricity or gas interconnections and ending the energy isolation is an important EU objective, the project developer said.