Construction of energy "highways" - Projects / From the line with North Macedonia, to Greece and the submarine cable with Italy
Albania is accelerating the construction of interconnection lines with neighboring countries, while the electricity sector remains dependent on hydropower resources, a dependence that directly impacts the increase in the costs of energy exchanges.
"We are connected via the 400 kV line with Kosovo, the current project which is with North Macedonia, we are also doing the feasibility study for the Albania - Greece line and we manage to connect with 400 kV lines with all our neighbors. Meanwhile, after this comes the connection with underwater cables with Italy" , - says Dorjan Sejamini, director of foreign projects, at the Transmission System Operator.
The most advanced project is the construction of the 400 kV Albania - North Macedonia interconnection line, which is expected to be completed by the end of this year.
"The civil works are almost finished. The mechanical works will start soon, the transformers have been manufactured and should be installed by September. The same situation is with the Elbasan substation, but the line is also progressing well," says Julian Angoni, project manager.
"The financing structure of this project is divided through a loan provided by the German KFW, a grant from the Western Balkans Investment Framework, and co-financing from the OST, in the amount of 5 million euros."
More specifically, 50 million euros are a loan provided by KFW and 17 million euros are a grant from the Western Balkans Investment Framework. The project includes the construction of the new 400 kV transmission line Elbasan - Qafë Thanë and Elbasan - Fier, with a total length of 130 km, the construction of the new 400 kV substation "Elbasan 3" and the expansion of the Fier substation.
Meanwhile, the project for the underwater cable connection with Italy is still in the early stages, but high-level government meetings have been held and the process has officially begun.
"It is understood that it is perhaps too early to talk about technical details related to financing, related to length, related to the exit and entry point with the Italian state, but it is on the way, it has started and the more these internal Albanian and regional projects become efficient, the more the pace will increase to continue with the detailing of the underwater cable with Italy," says Sejamini.
In addition to reducing electricity transmission costs, these lines contribute to the economic development of countries, strengthen regional cooperation in the energy sector, and help protect the climate and the environment.
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