Long Term analysis of submarine transmission grid extensions between the Greek islands and the mainland

Interconnections' infrastructure is considered fundamental to implement the common rules for the internal electricity market according to 2009/72/EU. Greece currently consists of 29 non-interconnected island systems, experiencing frequent forced outages and high generation costs. A number of interconnection plans are in the pipeline between the Greek islands in the Aegean Sea archipelago and the Greek bulk continental grid. This paper investigates interconnection scenarios and their impact in terms of security of supply, costs and renewable energy integration into the system. PLEXOS® Simulation Software by Energy Exemplar is used to simulate the Greek electricity system. The results show a twofold growth of renewables share between 2020 and 2040 while electricity generation costs recorded on the non-interconnected islands mirror continental costs following the grid extensions. Loss of load probability and unserved energy are eliminated, whilst greenhouse gas emissions are reduced by 73% (vs 1990) in 2040.