A contract was signed with EuroAsia Interconnector Limited on Friday to appoint Greece’s Independent Power Transmission Operator (IPTO) as the implementation body and project promoter of the electricity interconnector project between Greece, Cyprus and Israel.
In an announcement, IPTO said that the two companies proceeded together to inform the European Commission and the governments and involved authorities of the three countries.
The appointment of IPTO as the project promoter in this “emblematic project…ensures its technical and financial adequacy and lays the foundations for its timely completion,” it added, as it “has the financial strength, specialised human resources and possibilities to hire additional highly specialised personnel that will be required for the maturation of the project”.
The operator added that it has many years of experience and strong know-how in the implementation of projects of high technical complexity, such as the HVDC technology Attica-Crete interconnection, ”which is in a mature phase of construction with a completion horizon of 2024”.
EuroAsia Interconnector Ltd and IPTO will work closely together to ensure a smooth and rapid transition to the new implementation body, “as required by the schedule and expected by the governments and the European Commission,” the announcement added.
“An energy-breathing project for the wider region, with years of systematic effort, has now reached the pivotal point of starting its construction. Its completion will mark the electrical interconnection of Cyprus – the last non-interconnected EU member state – with the European transmission system, ensuring the island’s strong energy shield. And Israel will strengthen its security of supply, gaining the ability to increase, further and faster, the participation of Renewable Energy Sources (RES) in its energy balance”, the announcement concluded.
In statements, the Greek Minister of Environment and Energy, Thodoros Skylakakis, noted that the project is entering the final stretch.
“IPTO, as the implementing body and project promoter, assumes the responsibility of the timely completion of this emblematic project for energy security, which is distinguished by its high economic, environmental and geopolitical value,” he said.
“Its implementation will lead to a drastic reduction of CO2 emissions, while at the same time the national electricity grids of Cyprus and Israel will acquire a green, reliable two-way interconnection with Greece and the rest of Europe,” he added.
For her part, the deputy minister of Environment and Energy, Alexandra Sdoukou, said thie move will “’unlock’ the implementation of a project of strategic importance, not only for the region of Eastern Mediterranean, but also for the entire EU”.
IPTO president Manos Manousakis, pledged that “we will work with all our strength to ensure the best conditions, so that the Greece-Cyprus-Israel interconnection becomes a reality as soon as possible and on the most favourable terms”.
Meanwhile, EuroAsia Interconnector Ltd CEO Nasos Ktoridis expressed pride “that after 12 years of hard work and completion of the project’s maturation stage, we are handing the baton to IPTO, to start the construction of a project of top energy and geopolitical importance for Cyprus, Greece , Israel and Europe”.