Over the past months, Enemalta continued working to strengthen the electricity distribution system at different levels, the company said in a statement Thursday. In collaboration with Infrastructure Malta and Transport Malta, the company said it is accelerating this work, prioritising the areas hardest hit by the impacts of July’s heatwaves. 

In a joint press briefing with Infrastructure Malta and Transport Malta, Enemalta explained the ongoing and planned works to strengthen the distribution system as part of its accelerated plan. The company also said that it has issued a call for tenders for a new distribution centre in Naxxar. They called this particular project as “one of the most important works that must be done.”

Last July, Malta was hit by a spate of power cuts which the government attributed to the searing heat. Malta experienced a long heatwave in the last days of July. Enemalta revealed that during this period, a record annual peak demand of 663MW was recorded; this was reportedly 14.1% higher than the previous annual peak. Many localities were hit by regular and lengthy power cuts, with Enemalta working round the clock to restore power to affected areas.

During this joint press briefing, Enemalta iterated that the principal weakness in the national grid this past July came from “a sudden spike in underground cable faults” that affected the network’s resilience. Simultaneously, they stated that substation and distribution centre infrastructure were resilient following their analyses.

“Over the past months, Enemalta continued to dispatch its resources towards its six-year plan to strengthen its generation and distribution infrastructure. In parallel, we joined forces with Infrastructure Malta and Transport Malta to lay over 70km of 11 kilovolt underground cables over the next six months,” Enemalta’s Executive Chairman Ing. Ryan Fava said.

The six-month project will see the development of many new cable connections between different nodes of the national grid. The additional 70 kilometres of medium voltage cables that will be added through this investment is almost four times the length of new medium voltage cables added by Enemalta in the last two years.   

These immediate interventions for 2024 include reinforcements to the present infrastructure, namely in the general zones of and around Żurrieq, Rabat, Mosta, Naxxar, Cottonera, Kirkop, Żabbar, Valletta, and Luqa. For Gozo, other immediate interventions pertain to the areas within Nadur, Xagħra, and Xlendi.

Coupled with the continuation of Enemalta’s six-year network reinforcement plan, these new cable connections will continue strengthening the network’s resilience and flexibility, providing Enemalta with an increased number of alternative connections to facilitate quicker restoration of supply to customers during network emergencies.

Several works are reportedly already underway with more to commence in the coming weeks.

Infrastructure Malta CEO Ivan Falzon called this “national project for Malta” “an ambitious but doable plan”.

“We are convinced we can reach our targets by June 2024”, he said.

Between 2022 and 2023, Enemalta commissioned 80 new substations and completed 66 substation upgrades. This investment will continue in 2024, with the planned commissioning of another 45 new substations and the upgrading of several existing ones. It also completed the extension of three distribution centres at Marsascala, Mrieħel, and Tarxien. During this timeframe, the Maltese Energy Distribution company had commissioned 18km worth of new 11kV (medium voltage) cable connections; another 4.5km of cables are still nearing completion.

To date, 145 new 400/230V feeders have been laid in different localities, providing more alternative connections to increase network resilience in case of unplanned disruptions. Two feeders are scheduled to be supplied to Naxxar’s cables once the 2024 works begin. These feeders shall temporarily supply electricity to 10,000 households “to relieve the load onto distribution centres while supplying Enemalta’s clients.”

Enemalta’s distribution plan includes preparations for other major projects that will be completed in the coming years, including a new 132-kilovolt link between the Magħtab Interconnector Terminal and the Mosta Distribution Centre, to consolidate the principal connections between the Malta-Italy Interconnector and the local electricity distribution network. 

The company is also planning two new distribution centres, one in Naxxar and another one in Siġġiewi, as well as the rehauling and upgrading of the existing distribution centres in Msida and St Andrew's (Pembroke). “We are also pleased to announce that this week we published the call for tenders for the development of the Naxxar Distribution Centre, which will reinforce the network and continue improving our services in this region,” Ing. Fava told journalists.

As part of the 2024 investment, Enemalta will be issuing a call for tenders for 60 megawatts of additional temporary standby generation capacity in the coming weeks. This new plant will increase its reserve in case of emergency when other sources are unavailable. Fava told journalists during this briefing that these “diesel-fired generators” will be localized on land at the Delimara power station.

"This collaboration is vital for setting and achieving bold yet precise objectives, enabling our country to effectively confront upcoming challenges. Having different entities unite towards a singular goal is truly gratifying," stated Ivan Falzon, Infrastructure Malta Chief Executive Officer 

"Transport Malta will maintain a strong presence in the communities through our dedicated team of Field Officers and Enforcement Officers. Additionally, we will implement strategic diversions in public transport routes to ensure they remain primarily within their designated areas. This approach is designed to strike a harmonious balance between the specific requirements of these locations and the broader needs of schools and the community at large," said Jeanette Axisa, Chief Officer, Office of the CEO of Transport Malta.

The aim of this collaboration was said to follow an “N-1 principle”, meaning that the electricity distribution system “should be able to serve demand, including peak demand, even if it loses a single largest asset.” This was also said to be the reasoning behind the additional investment centred around Malta’s second interconnector.