The ELMED interconnector, also known as the Tunisia-Italy interconnector, is a planned 200 km, 600 MW
high-voltage direct current
A high-voltage direct current (HVDC) electric power transmission system uses direct current (DC) for electric power transmission, in contrast with the more common alternating current (AC) transmission systems. Most HVDC links use voltages betwe ...
submarine power cable
A submarine power cable is a transmission cable for carrying electric power below the surface of the water.
Route
The cable will run from the
Partanna
Partanna is a town and ''comune'' in province of Trapani, south-western Sicily, southern Italy. It is south-east of Trapani
Trapani ( ; ; ) is a city and municipality (''comune'') with 54,887 inhabitants, on the west coast of Sicily, in I ...
electrical substation
A substation is a part of an electrical generation, transmission, and distribution system. Substations transform voltage from high to low, or the reverse, or perform any of several other important functions. Between the generating station an ...
in
Trapani
Trapani ( ; ; ) is a city and municipality (''comune'') with 54,887 inhabitants, on the west coast of Sicily, in Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Trapani. Founded by Elymians, the city is still an important fishing port and the mai ...
,
Sicily
Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...
in
Italy
Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
Cape Bon
Cape Bon ("Good Cape"), also known as Res et-Teib (), Shrīk Peninsula, or Watan el Kibli, is a peninsula in far northeastern Tunisia. Cape Bon is also the name of the northernmost point on the peninsula, also known as Res ed-Der, and known in ant ...
in
Tunisia
Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...
with a maximum depth of 800 meters.
Technical description
The undersea cable is 200 kilometers long and has a capacity of 600 MW. While the undersea cable is 200 kilometers, another 20 kilometers of cable will be underground. The entire project is expected to cost €850 million.
Terna Group
Terna S.p.A. is a Transmission system operator, transmission system operator (TSO) based in Rome, Italy. It operates through ''Terna Rete Italia'', that manages the Italian transmission grid and ''Terna Plus'' which is in charge of new business o ...
started planning the project in 2003. The World Bank provided Tunisia with $268.4 million of financing in 2023.