Chinese utility company completes purchase of stake in Greek TSO’s subsidiary

A wholly owned principal subsidiary of Chinese state-owned electric utility corporation State Grid Corporation of China (SGCC) has completed the purchase of a 20% share in a subsidiary owned by Greek transmission system operator (TSO) Independent Power Transmission Operator (IPTO or ADMIE), this way entering what is said to be Greece’s largest island interconnector.

The agreement for the disposal of shares of ADMIE’s subsidiary company and operator of the Crete-Attica electricity interconnection, Ariadne Interconnection, to State Grid International Development (SGID), was announced in November 2024.

The Crete-Attica link officially entered into operation on May 24, with Crete now fully integrated into the national electricity system. The trial operation phase is expected to last throughout the summer months.

With a budget of over €1.1 billion, the cable link connects the Attica region on the Greek mainland to the Heraklion area in Crete, thanks to Nexans providing one 500 MW HVDC subsea cable system to form half of the bipole interconnection and Prysmian handling the other half of the interconnection and two subsea telecom links.

IPTO describes the interconnection as “the largest and most complex” electricity transmission project in Greece and one of the three deepest marine interconnections worldwide.