Hexicon granted permits to connect floating wind to Italy’s national grid

Hexicon, operating in Italy through its joint venture AvenHexicon, now has a portfolio of seven development sites for floating wind along the coasts of Sardinia, Sicily, and Puglia, Italy. Grid connections were applied for in 2022 and Terna has now issued the technical solution to connect six of the seven locations to the national grid – a total combined capacity of 7100 MW.

The interconnection permit, also called STMG, is a preliminary agreement from Terna to provide interconnection capacity. It provides a commitment from the TSO to make the necessary capacity available to be connected to the grid and is a mandatory step to receive the main authorisation (the so called ‘Autorizzazione Unica’ or ‘AU’) to build and operate an offshore wind farm. The grid connection solutions are issued for six offshore wind farms under development off the coasts of Sardinia, Sicily, and the mainland, in Puglia. The grid connection application for the remaining wind site is currently being processed and is expected to come through shortly.

“The progress is moving at record speed, which speaks for Italy’s ambition to develop renewables in the country. Having the grid connection ready is yet another milestone passed, and one which significantly increases the value of each project,” said Alberto Dalla Rosa, CEO at AvenHexicon.

The Italian government signalled early on an ambition to take measures to speed up the processes for renewable energy projects, to faster cut dependence on Russian gas. With a vast coastline and excellent wind resources, especially in the deep waters of the Mediterranean Sea, Italy has a strong potential for floating wind. GWEC has highlighted the country as one of the top five emerging markets for offshore wind. The country is aiming to generate 55% of its total electricity generation from renewables by 2030.

For more news and technical articles from the global renewable industry, read the latest issue of Energy Global magazine.

Energy Global's Winter 2022 issue

The Winter 2022 issue of Energy Global hosts an array of technical articles focusing on wind, solar, energy storage, geothermal, and more. This issue also features a regional report on the Australian renewables sector.

Read the article online at: https://www.energyglobal.com/wind/23012023/hexicon-granted-permits-to-connect-floating-wind-to-italys-national-grid/