Project overview

Points of interest

From the Italian landfall to the national electricity grid

The route in Italy

In Italy, the project proposals identify the areas surrounding Terna’s La Spezia electrical substation as potential areas of interest. The substation has been designated by the national transmission system operator as the connection point for the project. This choice is based on the capacity of the La Spezia grid node to accommodate the interconnection’s power, its proximity to the country’s main centres of electricity demand, and the need to avoid further congestion of the electricity grids in central and southern Italy, which are already under pressure due to the concentration of renewable energy generation facilities in these areas. The Italian section of the infrastructure, currently being defined together with the local communities involved, will include a landfall point along the La Spezia coastline, underground cables following existing roads to reach a new converter station, and a marine electrode supporting the safety and reliability of the interconnection.

The initial locations considered for the submarine cable landfall, converter station and electrode underwent preliminary assessments which ruled out significant landscape, archaeological and hydrogeological constraints. They were also reviewed by the relevant national, regional and local authorities and institutions, and subsequently supplemented with additional locations identified through the Participatory Planning process. These locations will be presented as part of the Public Consultation, the formal public participation process provided for under applicable legislation as part of the authorisation procedure before the Ministry of the Environment and Energy Security (MASE).

For further information on the proposed locations, please consult the interactive map or the Non-Technical Summary.

The marine route

From the coastline to approximately 1,000 metres depth, the submarine cables will be buried beneath the seabed at varying burial depths, depending on geological and environmental conditions. This approach is designed to balance protection against potential human interference with permitted fishing activities. At depths beyond 1,000 metres, where bottom trawling and anchoring activities are minimal, the cables will be laid directly on the seabed without burial requirements.

To minimise environmental impact on the marine ecosystem, installation techniques such as jetting will be used in sandy seabeds, while mechanical trenching or rock dumping will be applied in rocky or irregular seabed conditions. At the landfall points, the connection between submarine and onshore cables will be carried out using HDD (Horizontal Directional Drilling), a trenchless technique that avoids open-cut trenching, both offshore and onshore.

The cables will be manufactured using advanced insulating materials such as mass impregnated paper or cross-linked polyethylene (XLPE), selected according to the characteristics of each section to ensure safety, reliability, and environmental compatibility. The infrastructure is designed for a minimum operational lifetime of 40 years. The interconnection may be developed in progressive phases, starting with an initial installed capacity and subsequent increases up to the planned 2 GW capacity.

of subsea interconnection

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of interconnection capacity

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From Renewable Generation to Power Transmission into Italy

The route in Algeria

The project involves the development of an integrated renewable energy generation system in desert areas of Algeria, characterised by abundant solar and wind resources.

The configuration combines solar PV, wind power and battery energy storage systems (BESS), with a total capacity of at least 5 GW, designed to maximise the complementarity of the different energy sources and ensure a stable generation profile.

From these generation sites, certified renewable electricity will be transmitted to the Algerian coast through dedicated connection lines developed by Zhero in close cooperation with the relevant local authorities and entities. Distribution points will also be provided along the route, allowing electricity to be fed into the local grid. From the coast, the electricity will then be transmitted across the Mediterranean via HVDC submarine cables, minimising transmission losses over long distances.

Thanks also to the integration of BESS, the system will provide a “semi-baseload” generation profile – a renewable configuration that would be difficult to replicate in Italy or elsewhere in Europe – enabling the decarbonisation of the power sector even during hard-to-abate hours. As with the interconnection, the renewable generation park can be developed in phases, with the planned capacity progressively brought into operation.