Green light for Prysmian to construct first interconnector between Europe and Africa

June 23, 2026, by Nadja Skopljak

Italian cabling giant Prysmian has received the notice to proceed for the construction of the submarine power interconnection between Italy and Tunisia.

The Elmed project will be the first direct current connection between Europe and Africa and will run from the Partanna electrical substation in Sicily and the Mlaabi substation on the Tunisian Cap Bon peninsula, for a total length of 220 kilometers, of which 200 is undersea cable.

The bi-directional link will have a capacity of 600 MW and a maximum depth of approximately 800 meters, along the Strait of Sicily.

Italy’s transmission system operator (TSO) Terna and Tunisian counterpart STEG selected Prysmian for the construction of the submarine power interconnection in September 2025, with the cable laying vessel (CLV) Monna Lisa to carry out the installation.

The value of the contract is about €460 million and will now be included in the company’s backlog of projects.

“We are now ready to turn this ambitious project into reality. Utilising Italian assets, such as Arco Felice, our submarine cable factory near Naples, our unique asset monitoring based out of Palermo, and our Italian installation know-how, including our flagship submarine cable laying vessels, we will bring the value of clean renewable generation from Tunisia into the Italian and European energy mix, helping to bring down reliance on fossil fuels, while Tunisia will benefit significantly from direct access to Europe’s electricity grid, delivering the stable connection needed to fuel economic growth,” said Raul Gil, EVP Transmission at Prysmian.