Over €14 billion for the Italian electricity grid, recovery (also) starts here

Over €14 billion in ten years. This is the figure for Terna’s new Development Plan, which involves a 7% increase since the previous plan, a testament to the Italian high-voltage grid operator’s ever-increasing commitment. During this COVID-19 emergency, a powerful investment plan has been put into place which touches on all the fundamental points of the electricity system. It will entail not only the construction of new lines, but also works to make the network more secure, more resilient and technologically cutting-edge, in other words, more functional to energy transition objectives on a national and European level.

To this end, the Plan is articulated through a number of coordinated, coherent and vital actions that can be traced back to four categories of intervention.

Our electricity system is evolving to suit the challenges of the future: targets for decarbonisation and the integration of renewable sources, along with the progressive decommissioning of polluting energy sources, and the strengthening of connections with foreign countries.

In this regard, one of the most fundamental projects is the Tyrrhenian Link, the new electrical connection between Sicily, Sardinia and Campania, a €3.5 billion commitment that is essential to ensure the best use of renewable energy produced in Southern Italy. Another important chapter concerns the modernisation of the Sacoi 3 power line, which connects the Sardinia, Corsica and Tuscany electricity grids, carried out with our colleagues at the French TSO, Edf.

"We’ll have 27 new projects on track that will involve the construction of 300 km of new power lines, with an emphasis the reorganisation of existing grids at key points of the national infrastructure. This will then enable us to decommission more than 400 km of old power lines and replace them with a total of 3,800 km of new power lines over the course of the plan", said Terna's CEO and General Manager Luigi Ferraris.

Beyond the large-scale works. Our digital technology segment will be further expanded through initiatives aiming to address specific issues in the current energy environment. Various solutions adopted by Terna in its management of the electricity system involve forecasting models and advanced monitoring mechanisms for energy transmission systems based on the Internet of Things (IoT), satellites and drones.

The ten-year plan, therefore, fits into a dual scenario. On the one hand, we have the energy transition, pursued through the development of the grid in a manner functional to the goals for sustainability and reduction of environmental impact related to electricity production and transmission. And on the other hand, the focus is on facilitating economic growth, with investments in the efficiency and general security of the Italian electricity system.

In a time of crisis such as the one we are all living through at the moment, it is crucial that we look beyond the immediate situation, as far as possible to the future, for the sustainability of the electricity system, its resilience and its contribution to improving the quality of life of its users.