The Italian power transmission system operator (TSO) Terna has a submitted a request for authorisation to construct and operate the West Section of the Tyrrhenian Link, which will connect Sicily and Sardinia, to the Italian Ministry of Ecological Transition (MiTE), following the initiation of the authorisation process for the route between Sicily and Campania (the East Branch) in November 2021. The Ministry’s definitive authorisation decree, following which Terna will be allowed to start work, is expected by mid-2023.
In Sardinia, Terna plans to lay underground cables from the Terra Mala landing point of the undersea cable to Selargius, where the converter substation will be built in areas near the existing electrical substation. In Sicily, the undersea cables will land at Fiumetorto and will run for around 7 km to Termini Imerese, in Contrada Caracoli, where the converter substation will be located near the existing electrical substation.
The €3.7bn Tyrrhenian Link will involve the construction of two 1,000 MW direct current undersea power lines, one from Campania to Sicily and the other from Sicily to Sardinia, for a total length of 950 km. The infrastructure will be fully operational in 2028, but the first cable - related to the East Branch - will be up and running in late 2025.