Land reclamation plans marred by Malta-Sicily interconnector

The proposed location for the terminal station for the Malta-Sicily electricity cable in Zwejra, south of the landfills, means that any plans for land reclamation off Qalet Marku must be altered in view of the strategic importance of the submarine cable for Malta.

Ta’ Zwejra was chosen as the site for the new terminal in a study which assessed 26 different sites. A cheaper option would been to construct the terminal at Marsaskala or Xghajra near the proposed tunnel leading to Smart City; but this would have meant that it would have used the same tunnel leaving the Delimara power station. 

This was excluded because a catastrophic event inside the tunnel would leave Malta without any power for several days or weeks.

To date no final decision has been made public on the land reclamation project announced by Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi in 2005, alongside the aborted Xaghra l-Hamra golf course.

According to a project developments statement presented by Enemalta to MEPA the possibility of land reclamation by 2015 was not considered “a sufficiently influential consideration in the final recommendation for a cable lending area.”

But the choice of Zwejra as the site of the interconnector means that “any reclamation plans in the future must ensure that there is no danger of damage to the submarine electrical inter connection.

The Malta Environment and Planning Authority (MEPA) spent over €403,000 on studies to assess the feasibility of artificial islands, MEPA has not revealed the results of these studies, even if they were finalized in 2008.

The visual impact on the chosen site is expected to be minimal and the terminal will not be visible from the coast road.

Interconnector will be longest in the world
At 125 km, Malta is set to have the longest submarine cable operating on alternative current and a 132 kV/250 kV voltage in the world. 

The longest similar submarine connection in the world is that connecting the Isle of Man to England which is 115 km long but operates at a voltage of just 90 kV.  

The longest 132kV cable in the world is just 22km long.

But Enemalta is opting for a HVAC (high voltage alternating current) technology rather than HVDC (high voltage direct current technology) even if the latter technology is normally used for long distances.

But an unpublished study by Italian consultants Terna concludes  that a 125 km long Malta-Sicily twin cable operating at  a power of 225 MW will be technically feasible.

According to the report an HVAC interconnection requires less space for the terminal stations because the transmission networks in Sicily and Malta use HVAC. If HVDC is used a converter station will have to be build on both sides of the interconenctor.

Although both technical solutions were deemed feasible the final decision favouring HVAC was based on costings and “speed of implementation.”

But the report warns that HVAC cables could be exposed “to fluctuations on the Sicilian side which may destabilise or disrupt normal services”.

Tight deadlines
The PDS emphatically states that the project has to be completed before the Marsa plant is decommissioned in 2015.

“If the project is not carried out in time, Enemalta would be hampered from satisfying consumer demand while meeting environmental obligation,” the PDS states.

Moreover, the large scale installation of windfarms like the one envisioned at Sikka l-Bajda would not be possible without the interconnector.  The availability of 20 million EU funding is also tied to the commencement of works by the end of 2010. 

The first phase of the project is expected to be completed by 2013.

Enemalta has already issued a call for tenders for a preliminary marine survey to determine the best submarine route for the cable.  A call for expression of interest for the interconnector has been issued.

According to the PDS an electricity interconnection between Malta and Sicily has been considered since the early 1990s and that a study on this issue was carried out by Electricite de France in 1995 which had considered  a high voltage direct current link between Pembroke and Marina di Ragusa in Sicily. Another study was carried out in 2007 by Lahmeyer International and in 2008 Enemalta commissioned the Italian transmission system operator Terna to study the viability of an interconnection up to 400-450 MW.

The report quotes this unpublished study to conclude that electricity imported from mainland Europe is expected to cost less than the current cost of electricity generation for Enemalta.  The capital cost required for constructing the interconnector is also expected to be 25% to 30% less than that for building a power station and would need less maintenance. 

The opposition, through its environmental spokesperson Leo Brincat has repeatedly called on the government to publish the Terna study, on the basis of which most technical decisions are being made.

The PDS states that this report is now complete and includes an assessment and cost benefit analysis  of the various technical solutions.