“Italy’s geographical position makes it a natural hub in the Mediterranean and our country has the potential to become the European heart of electricity transmission and dispatching”: said Terna’s CEO and General Manager Luigi Ferraris in the interview published by QN on 2 December 2019. A few days after the inauguration of the Italy-Montenegro power line, a project of “technological excellence”, the CEO and GM talks about the challenges that the group is facing now. The energy transition requires “an increasing effort to strengthen the electricity grid and reduce congestion”: it is therefore necessary “to develop storage capacity and invest in innovation and digitisation”. On this basis, Terna has launched a Strategic Plan that envisages investments of 6.2 billion euros in the national electricity grid over the next five years. “This is the highest financial commitment this company has made towards the country’s growth” underlines Luigi Ferraris, explaining how the electrical system has changed drastically over the last decade. While ten years ago there were only 800 production points from which the energy fed into the grid passed, today there are more than 800,000 and we are moving towards a million: “We need an increasingly ‘intelligent’ and flexible network to collect, process and interpret an increasing amount of data. Technological innovation, sustainability, digitization: the Group’s commitment and the results achieved in recent years are reflected in projects such as the Italy-Montenegro power line. The infrastructure, which “will enable energy imports and exports, encouraging the use of more efficient resources”, stands out for its “substantial strategic value”: the European Commission also participated in this project by co-financing feasibility studies, proving how valuable it is for the European Energy Union. “Energy is the first step in developing investments and this project represents more than a simple collaboration between Italy and Montenegro”, remarked Luigi Ferraris, also taking stock of the other projects launched by the Group: “The Continent-Sicily-Sardinia link is a priority project for Terna and has been included in the 2018 Development Plan. Contacts have been made with the Regions to present the project and the authorisation process will follow”. At global level, however, the CEO and GM points out that interconnections with other countries provide security and support the full integration of the European energy and services markets. Luigi Ferraris mentions in this regard the Italy-France connection, to be “deployed within the first half of next year”, and the underwater interconnection that will unite Italy and Tunisia, which is now operational after the signing of a memorandum of understanding between Terna and Steg.
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