The background

The first thing most people probably do every day is to switch off their phone alarm, while the last one is probably to turn off the bedside light. These two things need electricity. Electricity is all around us, so it is hard to imagine a world without it.

If you think about how electricity was discovered, the first thing that probably comes to mind is Benjamin Franklin flying a kite. However, the road to modern electricity was a long and arduous one and involved the work of many people.

The term “electricity” dates back more than 2 000 years. In fact, it comes from the Greek word elektron, meaning amber. This is because the ancient Greeks realised that if they rubbed amber against wool, lightweight objects would stick to it. This was the discovery of static electricity.

The challenge

But things have moved on since then, and modern Greece has different electricity needs to ancient Greece.

In Crete, the electricity supply is relatively cost-inefficient for two main reasons. First, the inefficient oil-fired generation units, which provide electricity by burning heavy fuel oil or diesel oil. Second, the import and transportation costs of the fuel used by these units. In 2017, oil units covered 78.4% of Crete’s electricity demand, while renewables accounted for less than 22%.

Many of the oil-fired generation units in Crete are inefficient. Most of them are more than 20 years old and half of them have been operating non-stop for roughly 30 years. 

Despite Crete’s excellent wind and solar power potential, the use of renewable energies is limited. This is because electricity is difficult to store and Crete has an isolated electrical system, which means that green energy cannot be imported or exported. The production of green energy also depends largely on weather conditions.

@IPTO

The action

An electrical interconnection from Crete to mainland Greece will lower electricity costs and reduce emissions of greenhouse gases and air pollutants from the combustion of oil products. The project consists of two new 135-kilometre submarine cables linking Crete to the Peloponnese peninsula. New substations will also be built on each side and the existing transmission lines, underground cables and substations will be upgraded.

The landing points of the submarine cables are in Kissamos Bay (Crete) and the Malea peninsula (Peloponnese).
@Silvia Fraguas/EIB

JASPERS assisted the Independent Power Transmission Operator (IPTO) and the Ministry of Environment and Energy in the project preparation.

First, our experts helped national authorities assess whether the project objectives were in line with broader operational programmes. In this case, their objective was to reduce the country’s dependence on oil. The interconnector should reduce the combustion of oil products by power generation units by approximately 403 000 tonnes in the first year.

Then, JASPERS supported the Greek authorities in analysing the financial and economic aspects of the project. That gave us a detailed picture of the EU grant of €94.7 million, i.e. 74% of eligible expenditure. The European Investment Bank (EIB) co-financed the project through a loan, which accounted for about 40% of the total budget. 

Finally, at the request of the European Commission, the JASPERS Independent Quality Review division appraised the project’s compliance with the rules of the European Regional Development Fund and confirmed that the project was eligible for EU funding. The requested EU grant for the project was subsequently approved in due time.

The results

Thanks to the project, electricity supply costs will decrease, which means cheaper electricity bills. Greeks will save €180 million on annual electricity charges.

The interconnector is expected to cover about one-third of Crete’s electricity demand in 2021. Switching to more efficient sources will decrease the primary energy demand by 226 kilotonnes of oil equivalent a year.

The electricity system in Crete is no longer isolated, which will enable a higher penetration of renewable energy sources on the island. In addition, carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and sulphur dioxide (SO2) emissions will fall, helping to tackle global warming and cut local air pollutants.

A second phase will consist of building high-voltage direct current submarine cables linking Attica to Crete. This will add higher electrical capacity, which will further reduce consumers’ electricity charges and enable additional investments in renewables.

@IPTO

If you are interested in more technical information:

When it reaches completion, the project will boast:

  • The longest AC interconnection cable worldwide (~ 174 km).

  • The longest submarine high-voltage, three-core, XLPE insulated cable in the world (~ 135 km).

  • The deepest installed submarine high-voltage, three-core, XLPE insulated cable in the world (~ 1 000 m), exceeding greatly what has been achieved so far.

  • Significant innovations to improve cable design (lighter and stronger cables) and cable installation (bigger vessels and improved techniques).

  • State-of-the-art design thanks to the installation of a complete Distributed Temperature Sensing (DTS) and Dynamic Cable Rating (DCR) system to ensure optimal utilisation.

  • A static synchronous condenser (STATCOM) system to provide fast dynamic response and smooth voltage regulation. As a result, the transmission capacity of the link can be fully exploited under all possible anticipated conditions regarding system load and the generation of renewable energies in Crete.