Two more electricity corridors planned to connect Balkans with Italy

Bulgaria proposed an electricity corridor from Turkey to Montenegro, which is connected with Italy through an underwater cable. At the same time, Albania’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Infrastructure and Energy Belinda Balluku said a deal was reached for an interconnection with Italy across the sea.

Italy has subsea power lines both to Montenegro and Greece, and plans are underway to to lay more cables. However, a plan for a direct interconnection with Albania has now emerged.

It would run between Bari and Vlora, Dita reported. The news outlet added that the endeavor would cost an estimated EUR 1 billion.

East-west EU corridor would optimize peak loads with solar power

In addition, Executive Director of Bulgaria’s Electricity System Operator (ESO) Angelin Tsachev revealed an initiative for an electricity corridor from Turkey and through Bugaria, Greece, North Macedonia and Albania, to reach Montenegro, which would enable a link with Italy. He told public broadcaster BNR that the proposal is under consideration.

The Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia would get access to solar power from Europe’s southeast and wind power from the northwest

The idea is to optimize the peak load between the European Union’s east and west as it shifts with sunlight. Tsachev noted that the European Network of Transmission System Operators (ENTSO-E) is examining the possibility of including another project, for an electricity corridor from Greece to Poland and Germany, in its ten-year plan.

The proposed route is through Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic. It would enable the transmission of solar power from the continent’s southeast to the northwest while in parallel wind power would flow in the opposite direction. The renewable electricity potential in the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia isn’t that high, so it is an opportunity for sharing such energy between various countries, Tsachev stressed.

Partnership underway with UAE for Albania-Italy submarine power interconnector

Albania’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Infrastructure and Energy Belinda Balluku said the construction of an underwater interconnector with Italy would start soon. She stressed that a deal was reached with the government in Rome and transmission system operators of both countries. The United Arab Emirates also agreed to participate, Balluku asserted.

Albania is as an example for the diversification of renewable energy sources with its successful auctions for solar and wind power, the deputy prime minister claimed. The government is planning to add 4 TWh in annual output by 2030 and make the country a net exporter, she pointed out.

Last week Balluku met in the UAE with Chief Executive Officer of TAQA Jasim Husain Thabet. She said in a Facebook post that they spoke about the implementation of the Albania-Italy transmission project.

State-owned TAQA, or Abu Dhabi National Energy Co., is the biggest partner in a 2 GW solar power plant that was commissioned in Abu Dhabi in the runup to the United Nations Climate Change Conference COP28.