A second subsea cable needed for the grid interconnection to link Crete and the Peloponnese has been installed, with just a trial run by power grid operator IPTO now required for the completion and launch of the project, to cover approximately 30 percent of the island’s electricity transmission needs.

IPTO is aiming to conduct its trial run by the end of April. The Cretan interconnection project will eventually be complemented by a larger-scale link to Athens.

A trial run of the Crete-Peloponnese project’s first subsea cable has already been completed with success.

Despite various obstacles raised by the pandemic, work on this project has progressed swiftly, promising to soon end Crete’s energy isolation.

A variety of records have been set along the way. The Crete-Peloponnese subsea link, covering a 174km distance, is now the world’s longest subsea AC power connection, as well as the longest underwater high-voltage cable connection. Reaching up to 1,000 meters in depth, this subsea installation is also the world’s deepest high-voltage link.

A transitional hybrid model for Crete’s participation in target model energy markets – covering production and consumption and to be applied until the island’s full-scale grid interconnection to Athens is completed – is expected to be approved by the European Commission’s Directorate for Energy. The hybrid model’s regulatory framework is now ready and will soon be delivered to Brussels by the energy ministry.