Offshore Electricity Infrastructure in Europe - European Wind Energy ...

FiGuRe 15.3: selected aReas FOR analysis On the mediteRRanean map (sOuRce [51])
In 2008, the Heads of states and governments of the
European and Mediterranean countries have launched
the Union for the Mediterranean, to improve the regional
cooperation. In the energy field, the flagship
project of the Union for the Mediterranean will be the
Mediterranean Solar Plan (MSP). The MSP aims at two
complementary targets: developing 20 GW of new renewable
energy production capacities and achieving
significant energy savings around the Mediterranean
by 2020, thus addressing both supply and demand
[49]. It will help to address the challenges of internal
energy demand in the participating countries,
achieve the objectives of the EU Energy and Climate
Package, significantly contribute to the sustainable development
of non-EU countries, promote investments
and create jobs. There is a special interest for the
promotion of electricity transmission infrastructure,
with specific attention for the improvement of North-
South interconnections in order to allow the export of
green electricity from Mediterranean countries to EU
countries. In follow-up of the Second Strategic Energy
Review [22], several studies have been prepared,
among which one on possible power corridors [51]
(Figure 15.3).
An offshore grid in the Mediterranean Sea will mainly
be built from direct shore-to-shore interconnectors. In
some cases, tee-in solutions could be envisaged as
well (e.g. Malta).
OffshoreGrid – Final Report
F.V Recommendations for
policy, market and regulatory
framework
The experience gained from Northern Europe shows
that the driving forces for the development of an offshore
grid is the development of RES, the removal of
barriers and the regulation of the market [30]. Although
the Mediterranean has abundant renewable energy
resources, at present it is far from exploiting its full
potential because of institutional, technical, political
and market barriers. Moreover, not only the large scale
development of RES but also further drivers such as
the security of supply and economic issues will have
to be considered when evaluating interconnections.
F.V.I Legislative framework for
RES - national targets
Overcoming these barriers will require a strong political
commitment as well as increased investments
in the sector. A viable business climate in particular,
based on stable and transparent investment frameworks
with adequate pricing policies will be necessary
for long-term investments to take place.
The increase of the RES penetration is the critical factor
which drives the evolution of offshore grid development
151