Business
ZAWYA: Terna, STEG and Hitachi Energy: €770mln contract for Elmed converter stations
ZAWYA: Terna, STEG and Hitachi Energy: €770mln contract for Elmed converter stations
About this update from Terna S.p.a.
The Elmed project will play a strategic role in increasing the security and reliability of the electricity system in the Euro-Mediterranean area.The converter stations will be built in Italy in Partanna, in the Sicilian province of Trapani, and in Tunisia in Mlaabi, on the Cape Bon peninsula.Rome, Italy, Zurich Switzerland – Terna, the company that manages the Italian national electricity transmission grid, led by Pasqualino Monti, and STEG, the Tunisian electricity and gas grid operator, have awarded Hitachi Energy, a global leader in electrification, a contract worth approximately €770 million for the construction of the converter stations for the Elmed project, the first electricity interconnection between Italy and Tunisia.The awarding of the contract for the converter stations marks the completion of the procurement process for the first high-voltage direct current (HVDC) submarine link between Europe and North Africa.The tender, published in 2023 jointly by Terna and STEG in the Official Journal of the European Union, concerned the design, supply, and construction of the converter stations for the interconnection, one of the infrastructural projects included in the Mattei Plan for Africa to strengthen economic, energy, and geopolitical partnerships between Europe and African countries.The two infrastructures now awarded will be built respectively in Italy in Partanna, in the province of Trapani, and in Mlaabi, in the Menel Temime area, in Tunisia. The link, powered by advanced HVDC technology, will have a capacity of 600 MW and will extend for about 220 km, mostly via submarine cable, reaching a maximum depth of about 800 meters in the Strait of Sicily.Hitachi Energy is responsible for providing the HVDC solution that combines world-leading expertise in HVDC converter valves; its MACH™ digital control platform, power transformers, and high-voltage switchgear; as well as system studies, design and engineering, supply, installation supervision, and commissioning. The project will leverage its expertise developed through the successful delivery of some of the world’s largest and most significant interconnection projects.Other companies in the consortium, including D’Agostino Costruzioni Generali S.p.A. for the Partanna station and Orascom Construction SAE for the Mlaabi station, will mainly carry out civil works as well as electromechanical installatio...