Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1414808
8 ANALYSIS maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 29 SEPTEMBER 2021 1. Rezoning industrial land for other purposes may well increase pressure on ODZ land in the future There is a reason why tracts of ODZ (outside development zones) land are designated as brownfield industrial zones: this stock is an insurance against resorting to putting industry outside the development zones in the future. If a new job-creating industry comes our way, the land to accommodate it must be found without resorting to taking ru- ral land. Back in 2018, the government dropped plans for industrial expansion at Wied iz-Żring in Żejtun due to justified pop- ular opposition. A year earlier, it was the Labour government that approved changes to the local plan to expand the Ħal Far industrial area by 19,000q.m on land now identified for a motorsport de- velopment. The aim was to facilitate the develop- ment of additional industrial units at Ħal Far Industrial Area, and improve the environmental amenity of the area. Now the government will once again have to change local plans to accommo- date the racetrack. As noted by Green party leader Carmel Cacopardo, it sim- ply is "not normal for Malta Industrial Parks to release land forming part of an industrial estate for any purpose what- soever". Apart from these areas, the proposed racetrack will also include approximate- ly 60,000sq.m of ODZ land that is sur- rounded by industrial developments. This land would come in handy if plans need to be changed further to accom- modate future industrial expansion. The Prime Minister argues this expan- sion problem can be solved by resorting to vertical industrial development, but this suggestion is not even backed up by studies assessing present and future Three reasons motorsport's land grab governance Government is dishing out that could cater for future industrial accommodate an electorally group. But James Debono has this is another example of bad JAMES DEBONO WHY did Malta not invest in more re- newable energy generation, instead of a second electricity interconnector to Sici- ly, which also relies on the importation of non-renewable sources? A project statement by the Maltese government says the interconnector will not exclude future investment in renewables to complement energy gen- eration. The development of a second inter- connector linking Magħtab in Malta to Ragusa in Sicily, will back up any future investments in offshore wind or solar farms by making up for the intermitten- cy in energy output of renewable energy sources. The statement, presented by the gov- ernment-owned Interconnect Malta company, says the Malta will be import- ing the energy required to power both its expected economic growth, and the electrification of road transport. Indeed, gross energy consumption is expected to increase from the cur- rent 2,500 GigaWatt hours, to around 3,800GWh in 2040. But currently, only 14% of the energy imported through the first intercon- nector comes from renewable energy sources. The decision to go for a second inter- connector, instead of investing in the local generation of renewable energy, was criticised by Green Party ADPD be- cause the interconnector will only shift emissions elsewhere. According to Interconnect Malta's project statement to the Environment and Resources Authority, which forms part of an environmental impact assess- ment process, the second interconnec- tor will facilitate the integration of any potential offshore solar or wind farms, with a stable connection to the national grid, offsetting the intermittency of re- newable sources. This is because renewable energy can- not always consistently produce energy at all hours of the day. Interconnect Malta considers a num- ber of alternatives before concluding that a second interconnector is a better alternative. One of the options is of in- vesting in additional renewable energy generation, acknowledging this would meet the objectives of the European Green New Deal. But due to the inter- mittency of these sources, Malta would still need an additional supply of ener- gy, the report claims. The need for energy storage systems for such renewable sources would also be "challenging", while renewable ener- gy plants would need a larger area than that required by conventional genera- tion plants or interconnectors. "As such an area is not available on- shore in Malta, offshore solutions will have to be resorted to. Such infrastruc- ture will result in increased capital cost," Interconnect Malta said. But while noting these challenges, the report concludes that renewables and the interconnection cable "are comple- mentary, and one will not exclude the other". The second interconnector can also operate in a bi-directional mode, im- porting electricity from Sicily but tech- nically able to transmit excess electrici- ty produced in Malta back to Sicily. Another option considered was the development of an additional power station. But any such plant would have to be hydrogen-ready in order to com- ply with reduced greenhouse emission limits mandated by the European Green Deal. And such technology is "not mature enough" and is still considered a "risky proposition", even if this technology is expected to evolve rapidly in the future. Investing in such a technology prema- turely could result in "stranded assets", Interconnect Malta said. One of the risks of importing more en- ergy from the interconnector is that the Maltese grid could be more exposed to fluctuations in the Sicilian grid, which may destabilize or disrupt normal ser- vice. But the report states that experience with the first interconnector has shown that such "situations are infrequent, and the protection systems installed protect the Maltese grid to a large degree." The report also justifies the choice of Magħtab, which hosts the present inter- connector, as the site for the new ter- minal station. The only other site con- sidered was the Delimara power station, which is already generating 630MW of energy. Adding another 200MW power at this site and leaving the Magħtab terminal station importing only 200MW would have reduced the benefit of the project from the point of view of security of supply, in the case of any unwarranted event at Delimara. Therefore, connect- ing the project at Magħtab would lead to a more reliable system, as the ener- gy inputs to the Maltese grid between these two sites would be further equal- ized. Moreover the terminal station at Magħtab is already equipped with most of the civil works needed to install the second interconnector, namely the HV switchgear room, cable ducts, a trans- former bay as the cable tunnels to con- nect this station to the local electricity grid. With the exception of equipment in- stalled in terminal stations already used for the first interconnector in Ragusa and Magħtab, the project will be entire- ly underground or underwater and no permanent above-ground constructions will take place in Malta. The length of the submarine cable is estimated to be between 97km to 102km, depending on the final route chosen. The onshore cable is estimated to be between 0.8km and 2km in Malta and between 17.9km and 20.1km in Ita- ly. Onshore equipment shall be limited to electrical equipment installed, in the existing Magħtab terminal. Interconnector set to 'complement' renewable energy