Engineering tender issued for Malta’s third electricity interconnector

The government has issued a tender for the basic engineering phase of Malta’s planned third electricity interconnector with Italy, a statement said.

Following the announcement of the third interconnection project (IC3) during the unveiling of the energy vision document, Malta’s Energy Shift: A Sustainable Power Transition, Interconnect Malta has issued a tender for the project’s basic engineering.

The aim of the project is to strengthen the island’s security of supply by diversifying the country’s connection point with the European network.

Similar to the first and second interconnectors, this new interconnection will operate in a bi-directional mode.

However, it will be connected at a higher voltage of 380kV, compared to the 220kV of IC1 and IC2.

This 380kV connection will link directly to Italy’s national grid backbone, providing Malta with more direct access to the European mainland electricity network.

IC3 will also be an innovative project for Malta, as it will be the first interconnector to use High-Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) technology for electricity exchange, the statement said.

“We see these projects as the foundation of Malta’s transition towards a carbon-neutral economy,” Energy Minister Miriam Dalli said.

She added that increased interconnectivity, through a diversified connection point, allows for increased importation of electricity sourced from renewable energy, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, while allowing for local large-scale offshore renewable projects to be connected to Malta’s electricity grid without creating instability and balancing issues.

“These projects are also in line with government’s vision for a diversified, clean and affordable power sector,” Dalli said.

The statement said that ICM has already taken concrete steps in the development of this project, which is being designed as a scalable interconnection, initially operating at 200MW with the option to expand to 400 MW.

The project, led by Interconnect Malta, has also been included in the 2026 ENTSO‑E Ten‑Year Network Development Plan, marking an important step toward securing Project of Common Interest status and access to EU funding.

“The issuing of this tender marks a key step forward for Malta’s third electricity interconnector, launching the basic engineering phase that will guide the project’s design and permitting stages,” CEO of Interconnect Malta Ismail D’Amato said.

He said that the project will create a modern, flexible link starting at 200MW with the possibility to expand to 400MW, using the best available technologies and routes to ensure reliability and efficiency.

Overall, the interconnector will strengthen Malta’s energy supply and support renewable energy, D’Amato said.