Cretan connection sabotage
Grid operator reports damage to key infrastructure, aimed at delaying the linkup project
The Crete-Attica electrical interconnection project has been sabotaged with the aim of stopping the work, the Independent Power Transmission Operator (ADMIE) has said.
ADMIE said that the incident took place on Wednesday and involved the mechanical installation equipment of the underground part of the cable, north of Crete’s highway, and a complaint has already been filed by the contractor to the competent police department. The certainty expressed by ADMIE about an incident of sabotage which was not aimed at stealing materials but at interrupting work on the electrical interconnection is noteworthy.
As ADMIE sources explain to Kathimerini, “it’s not like anyone went to open a tank and steal oil, an event that is often observed. They caused damage to a specialized machine, on which the cable to be buried is placed, which means that the goal was to stop the work.”
For now the extent of the delay that this incident will bring to the completion of the project is being examined, with ADMIE sources saying that it will be for a period of a few weeks or even a month. The project is expected to be completed by the end of the year and be in commercial operation by 2025.
In the meantime, the Energy Ministry is rushing to legislate the direct assignment to the Public Power Corporation of new production capacity for the sufficiency of Crete and the non-interconnected islands in the summer season and at the same time ensure the required approvals from the Commission, as the possibility that had been given to PPC with prior approval for the upgrade and operation of emergency units ended in January 2021.
On Crete, the adequacy problem arose due to PPC’s decision to withdraw five oil units from the island because of their age, and the postponement by ADMIE of the completion of the interconnection of the island with Attica for end-2024 and its commercial operation in mid-2025. Based on the ADMIE study, the withdrawal of the units creates a deficit of 190 megawatts for the summers of 2024 and 2025, and the ministry has decided that PPC will cover it.
