Cyprus to join European power grid following deal with Greece

Cyprus hopes to join the European power grid by 2028, or at the latest 2030, following an interstate agreement signed with Greece on Saturday. 

Following months of negotiations and finalised by Cypriot president Nikos Christodoulides during a visit to Athens earlier this week, the deal was signed by Cypriot and Greek energy ministers this weekend. 

Cyprus’ energy lines will be joined to Crete and then pass through the Mediterranean to mainland Greece and the rest of Europe. 

Nicosia and Athens hailed the development as one that will allow the project “to kickstart over the next few days.”  

Reaching the agreement proved a challenge amidst delays and disagreements between both parties. Points of contention included final shared costs, due diligence and cost-benefit considerations. 

However, rapid progress was made over the past few weeks in bridging the gap and working out a deal. 

The leaders of Cyprus, France and Greece will meet in New York next week to discuss the project. 

In a statement, a government spokesman said Christodoulides had discussed the power grid project with his French counterpart President Emmanuel Macron over the phone and its importance in implementing the European Union’s energy strategy. 

The cable will link networks from Europe and Cyprus in a project costing 1.9 billion euros and later stretch to Israel. 

The European Union will fund it with the sum of 657 million euros. 

On completion, project promoters say it would be the “world’s longest” such high-voltage cable at 1,240 km as well as the deepest at 3,000m. 

The goal of the project will be contributing towards lifting the energy isolation of Cyprus as well as promoting the Greek strategic goal of becoming a clean energy transit hub.