Megawatt Mosaic, the BESS project developer, has secured planning consent and grid connection for a portfolio of four 99MW BESS sites in Italy - two in Sardinia and two in Tuscany - which will form part of the Tyrrhenian Link, a planned subsea transmission connection.

Helen Passfield, Director of Asset Management at Megawatt Mosaic, said: "During the past three years Megawatt Mosaic has analysed more than 700 potential connection points across Italy to identify sites that can successfully proceed to construction, and onward to connection and operation.

"With land rights, grid connection permission granted by TERNA, and EIA studies completed and passed for all four assets, this news marks a major milestone in the project, and we are ready to partner with investors to take the projects to the next stage in development."

Further project investment is now required for ‘last mile' development, to move the assets to ready-to-build status.

Strategically Italy is a key geography as it currently experiences the greatest grid imbalance globally after the US. According to the National Integrated Energy and Climate Plan (PINEP) more than 55% of gross electricity consumption will come from renewables by 2030, and the use of coal is expected to be completely phased out by 2025, representing 8 GW of reduced generation capacity, of which 1GW is in Sardinia.

In support of these targets, Megawatt Mosaic's projects are part of the Tyrrhenian Link which is a EUR3.8bn next-generation EU infrastructure project that will complement existing high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission links from mainland Italy to Sardinia. The link will create a complete loop to ensure the transmission of electricity between the mainland and the two islands of Sicily and Sardinia by way of a double submarine cable with a length of approximately 970km and a capacity of 1,000 MW.

This project will result in greater stability of the electricity system for the two islands, reinforce the stability and security of the grid, and allow a more flexible integration of renewable energy sources, contributing to the objective of phasing out coal-fired power plants.