The ministers of energy of Israel, Cyprus and Greece took a major step March 8 toward bridging Asia and Europe, inking an agreement on connecting their national electricity grids through some 1,500-kilometer (932-mile) underwater Mediterranean cable. At a maximum depth of 2.7 kilometers (1.7 miles), the 2,000 megawatt Euro-Asia Interconnector will be the deepest and longest submarine electricity cable in the world.

The so-called electricity highway is designed to provide energy security for each of the three countries, using clean energy sources. It will span some 310 kilometers (193 miles) between Israel and Cyprus, 900 kilometers (559 miles) between Cyprus and Crete, and an additional 310 kilometers between Crete and Ithaca in Greece. Construction of the 2.5 billion euro project will be co-financed by the European Union, which has designated it a Project of Common Interest, and the partner states. Completion is scheduled for 2024.

The memorandum of understanding signed by Energy Ministers Natasa Pilides of Cyprus, Israel’s Yuval Steinitz and Greece’s Kostas Skrekas calls for cooperation in planning, developing and implementing the project. The sides have committed to share information and harmonize standards in keeping with the goals of the Paris climate accord on decarbonizing the global economy.

“The cable will provide us with emergency backing from European electric grids; more importantly, it will help us expand significantly our reliance on solar energy in keeping with the government’s solar energy goals,” Steinitz told Al-Monitor.