A gas pipeline permit application has been filed in Sicily and tenders are being prepared for the necessary environmental studies, Energy Minister Joe Mizzi said.

The process will eventually see Malta connected to mainland Europe’s natural gas infrastructure via Italy.

The minister was in Sicily for talks with regional president Rosario Crocetta on the pipeline, which is expected to connect Delimara with Gela on the Italian island’s southern coast.

After the government and the Sicilian region signed a letter of intent last May for enhanced cooperation on the project, the permit application in Sicily was filed during the summer months.

“We are currently preparing a number of tenders so that we may start working on the necessary permitting and environmental impact assessment studies during next year,” Mr Mizzi said.

Feasibility studies have already identified the optimal undersea route connecting both islands.

Mr Mizzi said high-level technical meetings held over the past months with the Sicilian authorities led to an agreement in principle on the proposed route.

The gas pipeline is planned to have a capacity of two billion cubic metres per year and will be 159 kilometres long. Seven kilometres of the pipeline will be onshore in Gela, where a terminal station will connect it to the Sicilian gas network.

Mr Mizzi said the Sicilian authorities were offering continuous cooperation on the project, which was identified as a ‘Project of European Common Interest’ by the European Commission.

This means that the pipeline will benefit from streamlined permitting procedures and European Union funds.

The delivery of natural gas through the pipeline for use in the power stations will replace the liquefied natural gas floating storage inside Marsaxlokk Bay.

The LNG tanker berthed at Delimara was the source of much criticism when plans for the new gas power station were unveiled.

The storage facility will no longer be necessary when the pipeline is up and running.

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