In recent years, the SEMCs undertook to interconnect their power networks in order to further develop electricity exchanges. Among them, several interconnections are already in operation. This report describes the electricity interconnections in the Mediterranean region, including the ones which have been recently commissioned.

In addition to the existing interconnections, namely those of the Maghreb, Algeria is already interconnected to Tunisia (4 connections) and to Morocco (2 connections), recent connections were brought into service, including those linking Spain to Morocco, Libya to Egypt, Egypt to Jordan, and Syria to Jordan and Lebanon.

Several new interconnection projects are under way linking Morocco to Algeria (third connection), Algeria to Tunisia (fifth connection), Tunisia to Libya, Libya to Egypt, Syria to Turkey, and Turkey to Greece. Concerning the interconnections presently planned at 220 kV, their voltage is planned to be increased to 400 kV at a later stage.

With the start-up of the Spain-Morocco link in 1997, the two Mediterranean shores are already interconnected. In the future, the interconnection of the two shores will be further strengthened with the doubling of the Spain-Morocco line, the new undersea cable from Algeria to Spain and the interconnection projects Turkey-Greece, Algeria-Italy and Tunisia-Italy.

The new projects will enable major SEMCs to interconnect as well as to connect with the European network following the completion of the “electrical loop” around the Mediterranean in 2008. OME participated to the «MedRing» study related to the behaviour of the “Mediterranean electrical loop” which is supported by the European Commission. The MedRing project (26 months study) is completed in May 2003.

Thanks to the completion of “the Mediterranean electrical loop”, an increase in Mediterranean electricity exchanges is expected by 2010. According to the estimations of the MedRing study, power exchange will increase from the 69 TWh in 2005 to 75 TWh by 2010.

Date: 2006