Italy's power transmission system operator Terna (CDP Reti 29.85%) has presented its new 10-year investment plan, with the objective to invest €14bn to upgrade Italy’s power grid and to support the shift towards renewables. Investments under this plan will contribute to raise the cross-border exchange capacity (+5 GW) and transit limits between market zones thanks to new power lines (+7 GW), while reducing grid losses and cutting related CO2 emissions by 2.1 Mt/year.
With an amount of investment 7% higher than the previous program, Terna’s 2020 Development Plan includes 27 new projects for 300 km of new power lines: the TSO will build new power lines and rationalise grid portions in heavily developed areas such as the coastline of the Marche region and industrial zones and towns around Verona, Padova, Parma, Bari, or Crotone. In addition, Terna will decommission more than 400 km of existing lines and demolish around 3,800 km of obsolete grid infrastructure . The group also aims at increasing transmission capacity between the islands and the South-North corridor of the mainland: Terna will focus on the new Tyrrhenian Link HVDC Continent-Sicily-Sardinia connection, and will complete the overhaul of the Sardinia-Corsica-Italy (SA.CO.I.3) connection and the HVDC Adriatic connection. Half of the new power lines developed under the Plan will be underground and/or undersea.