IN Brief:
- Greek authorities completed the permitting procedure for survey and cable-related operations on 6 November.
- Nexans applied on behalf of the Great Sea Interconnector owner, and a NAVTEX warning followed the authorisation.
- Permission to conduct work does not establish that survey operations or cable installation have been completed.
Greece has completed the licensing process for maritime surveys and cable-laying operations associated with the Great Sea Interconnector linking Greece and Cyprus. Greece’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed on 6 November that the responsible authorities had granted the required authorisation following an application submitted by Nexans on behalf of the project owner. A navigational warning, known as NAVTEX, was issued after the decision. The move provides a regulatory basis for specified offshore activity, although the authorisation does not itself demonstrate that the relevant surveys or cable installation have been carried out.
The decision followed a favourable opinion from the interministerial committee responsible for marine survey permits. The Greek foreign minister then authorised the survey and cable-laying operations. The survey vessel subsequently requested the navigational warning needed to notify maritime users of the planned work, which the authorities said was issued immediately. These steps are distinct: permission establishes an authorised activity, while the warning communicates information relevant to vessel movements and navigation within the designated area.
Nexans submitted the applications for the Great Sea Interconnector project owner, GSI, drawing on its role in high-voltage subsea cable supply. The route connects Greece and Cyprus, across a marine corridor where survey access and navigational notices have been sensitive delivery requirements. Nexans is also supplying a separate 110kV cable package for the Corinth–Kos interconnection serving the Dodecanese. The two projects have different owners, routes, and contracting arrangements, even though the manufacturer is involved in both.
The Great Sea Interconnector is intended to create an electricity transmission route between two power systems separated by a substantial maritime distance. The engineering work includes investigation of a subsea corridor, assessment of installation constraints, and cable handling and protection along the selected route. The 6 November authorisation is relevant because a marine transmission project cannot move directly from design to installation without considering access to the seabed and the requirements imposed by national authorities. The latest decision advances that administrative process.
Seabed surveys help characterise route conditions before cable installation. They can identify features affecting the feasibility of burial or seabed placement, as well as areas requiring alternative methods or closer inspection. A NAVTEX notice alerts vessels to activity within the relevant maritime area, reducing the likelihood of conflicts with other navigation. Neither procedure is an electrical commissioning test, and neither establishes that an energised connection exists between the countries. The project still requires physical construction, testing, and operation before it can transfer electricity.
The survey vessel Abeille Marengo had already arrived in Crete in late October in preparation for route investigations. Greece’s 6 November decision now provides the authorisation needed for the specified activity, following the earlier mobilisation. Timing matters for such projects because vessel schedules and suitable sea conditions must be coordinated with permits, while marine notices define the locations of intended work. The ministry confirmed the procedural steps, although it did not publish completed survey results or an installation progress report.
Separately, Cyprus issued a maritime warning for surveys in its exclusive economic zone from 19 November, according to contemporaneous reporting. The notices help establish a planned operating window, but the actual commencement and progress of surveys still require confirmation from the project participants or relevant maritime notices. Published schedules may change according to technical and operational conditions, so a notification should not be described as an accomplished survey or as evidence of cable already laid.
Transmission planning, environmental permissions, route surveying, cable manufacture, offshore installation, and high-voltage testing operate on different timetables. The latest Greek decision removes one permitting obstacle while leaving substantial engineering and delivery work ahead. Survey results can alter proposed burial methods or the protection required in particular seabed sections, especially where the corridor encounters difficult ground conditions or existing assets. The project must then move through physical cable deployment and electrical testing before an operational connection can be established.
Greece’s authorisation and the associated NAVTEX have established a defined administrative basis for marine operations. Cyprus has separately issued a warning covering surveys in its exclusive economic zone from 19 November, adding detail to the proposed activity period. Confirmation of when each survey segment starts, what the investigations find, and how cable-laying work is sequenced will depend on further notices and project reporting. By 6 November, the formal Greek permit stage had been completed, with the results of the planned offshore operations still to follow.
