Govt sets deadline for Vlora-Brindisi underwater line

TIRANA, Feb. 8 – The government approved this week the construction of a new Vlora-Brindisi interconnection line linking Albania to Italy. In the new amendments to a decision made in Jan. 2008 the Albanian government has set a three-year deadline for the construction of the interconnection line, with works scheduled to start no later than Dec. 31 2012 and their completition scheduled for Dec. 31 2015.
“The decision is an extraordinary important development in our ambitious project to turn Albania into a small superpower of renewable energy in the region. Connections to the other Adriatic coast are strategically important,” said Prime Minister Berisha of the underwater interconnection line with Italy which is Albania’s top trade partner.
Italian company Moncada Costruzioni has been awarded a permit to start the construction of a transmission line between the Italian city of Brindisi and the Albanian port of Vlora. The 400 kV power cable, stretching 145 km across the Otranto channel under the Adriatic Sea at a depth of over 900 meters, will allow for electricity to be transmitted in either direction between the two countries. Moncada also plans to build a 500 MW wind park in Albania to export electricity to Italy. The constructions, for both the line and the wind park, have not started yet.