The first, 140 kilometer phase of installing the Tivat‒Pescara underwater line, which shall be 390 kilometers long, was completed in mid-March by Nexans, web portal Analitika said.

The Norwegian company is Italy’s Terna’s partner and it is yet to set another 250 km cable, which shall be connected to the first one. Another cable, 500 meters away from the first one, will be installed by the Italian company Prysmian, and the works may start in a year.

The 1 GW Italy-Montenegro underwater transmission cable project  has faced numerous delays because of Croatian government’s decision to explore the potential for oil and gas basins located under its territorial waters.

Montenegro will be profiting EUR 10-40 million per year, as 20 percent of transmission earnings belongs to Montenegrin company CGES. Terna’s share shall be 80 percent for a period of 40 years.

The contract was signed on November 23, 2010 between the Government of Montenegro, Montenegrin company CGES and Italian company Terna. KfW Development Bank and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) provided majority of project’s financing.