Société Monégasque de l'Électricité et du Gaz, the historical concessionaire, has been distributing and supplying electricity and gas in the Principality for over 130 years. It operates public lighting and maintains over 7,200 light points in the Principality. For more than 25 years, it has also been producing and distributing Urban Heating and Cooling (Seawergie): by recovering the energy supplied by the waste recycling centre of its subsidiary Société Monégasque d'Assainissement (SMA).
Distribution and supply of energy:
The distribution and supply of energy, essential to both the economy and the needs of each and every one of us, is the cornerstone of our mission and a perfect illustration of the very notion of public service. The efficiency of our service depends above all on the reliability and efficiency of our infrastructure. Any failure has far-reaching consequences, impacting not only day-to-day operations but also vital services. Network stability requires constant vigilance and investment. Several indicators are used to measure performance. In addition, to ensure that the system remains under control, our teams work hard throughout the year to carry out the maintenance and renewal operations needed to secure the technical reliability of the network. Networks are also at the heart of the digital revolution, which is why our employees are working hard to study, adopt and even design the best technologies and enable essential operations to be carried out remotely. The alliance between people and digital technology is now the key to the operational excellence of our infrastructures.
Electricity distribution
The value of the average cut-off time per customer, according to the criteria defined by the concession-granting authority, for the 2019 financial year was 10 min 10s, compared to 46 min 10s in 2018 and 6 min 32s in 2017. The 2020 figures will be published shortly.
Technical specifications of the electricity network:
Length of the networks | 3 HVB/HVA source substations | Public lighting | Number of HVA/LV source substations |
High voltage B 63 kV: 4 km High voltage A 20 kV: 83 km Low voltage: 80 km | Fontvieille : 63 kV/20 kV Sainte-Dévote : 63 kV/20 kV Monte Carlo | Number of lights: 6916 | Public: 204 Private: 11 |
Source substations
The first Sainte-Dévote source substation was built back in May 1980. It was completed in July 1983. The substation is built into one of the walls of the Vallon de Sainte-Dévote, under the Boulevard Rainier III.
Built for a capacity of 72,000 KVA, it includes :
2 transformers
36000 KVA
(63000V / 21000 V / 11000 V)
1 transformer
36000 KVA
(63000V / 21000 V)
Power is supplied by two 800 mm2, 63,000 V dry cables from the EDF "Bordina" substation in Beausoleil. A 1200 mm2, 63000 V dry cable provides back-up to the SMEG substation in Fontvieille..
In the 1990s, SMEG embarked on a vast programme of electrical equipment, which led in 1992 to the creation of a new source substation in the Fontvieille district.
This 63/20 kV transformer station is connected to the Sainte-Dévote substation, so that it can take over in the event of a power cut.
In 1993, a remote control centre made it possible to operate the Fontvieille source substation from SMEG's premises. A year later, the same centre was also used to control the Sainte-Dévote substation. In 2006, the decision was made to build a third substation in Monaco, and work began in 2012. 5 years later, the third substation was operational. The third source substation was inaugurated on 27 November 2017 by HSH Prince Albert II.
Key figures
The earthworks and civil engineering work involved more than 90 people at peak times.
More than 330 blasts were needed to excavate the rock and build the 2,100 m² substation, which also uses
700 m² of the former SNCF tunnel that was disused when the Monaco underground station was built.
The work also involved building a 300 m² bridge with two arches extending the existing viaduct to provide access to the substation.
Gas distribution
Low-pressure gas network
The average cut-off time for customers connected from the low-pressure network was 10 min 15 s for 2019, compared to 9 min 54 s in 2018. This relatively stable figure is due to the absence of damage or incidents. It should be noted that maintenance cuts on the low-pressure networks affected a small number of customers (102 in 2019 compared to 107 in 2018). The 2020 figure will be published shortly.
Medium-pressure gas network
The average cut-off time for customers connected from the medium-pressure network was 40 min 42 s in 2019, compared to 13 min 01 s in 2018 and 35 min 35 in 2017. 2020 figure to be published shortly.
The gas network technical specifications
Length of gas network:
- Medium pressure = 29 km
- Low pressure = 1 km
Number of connections:
- Medium pressure = 842
- Low pressure = 92
Urban Heating and Cooling
SMEG has held the concession for heating and cooling networks in the Principality of Monaco since 1987, in addition to the gas and electricity concessions.
SeaWergie, a sustainable development tool for the Principality
The heating and cooling plant is connected to the waste recovery centre (CVD) and to an underground seawater pumping station built into the Fontvieille sea wall. The energy is supplied by insulated pipe networks running under the roadway to the connected buildings. The plant recycles energy from household waste in three forms:
- Electricity, partly redistributed on the public network
- Hot water, distributed to heating networks to heat buildings and produce domestic hot water. This avoids the emission of 6,000 tonnes of CO2 per year.
- Chilled water, distributed via the cooling network, is used to air-condition commercial and residential buildings and industrial processes.
Thanks to this TRIGENERATION principle, the Monaco plant is able to use the energy from waste in its cooling network to air-condition buildings. The advantage is twofold: reduced electricity consumption and use of locally recovered energy.
Since 2013, seawater drawn from a depth of 110 metres has been used to air-condition connected buildings in a sustainable and environmentally-friendly way:
- It avoids fresh water consumption: - 100,000 m3 of water per year,
- Improves the energy efficiency of production,
- Eliminates the risks associated with legionella.
For more info: www.seawergie.mc
Public lighting
SMEG operates and maintains public lighting installations in the Principality of Monaco.
Our company maintains almost 200 km of cables and more than 7,200 street lighting units in the Principality.
In order to improve the energy efficiency of public lighting installations, a vast programme to replace traditional light sources (incandescent lamps and mercury vapour lamps) is being implemented with the Department of Urban Development. These sources are gradually being replaced by LED lighting or metal halide lamps, which are far more energy-efficient than traditional sources.
Port of Condamine
For several years, the Prince's Government has been modifying its plans for occupying the waterfront of the Port de la Condamine, with the aim of optimising the space available for larger yachts.
In consultation with the Société d'Exploitation des Ports de Monaco, SMEG has drawn up a new master plan for the port's power supply, which includes higher energy requirements. This is the reference framework for the development of the electricity network around the Port of Condamine.
Connecting a superyacht
This project was completed on 10 November 2014 via a dedicated 20,000 V transformer substation, for a power requirement of 1,250 kVA.
These facilities, designed by SMEG, are part of the "Partnership contract relating to electricity distribution facilities in the ports of Monaco", signed in 2012 between SMEG and the Société d'Exploitation des Ports de Monaco (SEPM). This 10-year contract covers the maintenance, operation, electrical work and technical assistance for the electrical installations in Monaco ports.
This agreement provides for extended services compared with SMEG's previous commitments in this area.
The electric equipment installed, which is particularly important and complex given the specific features of the ships to be supplied, will help to improve the environmental quality of Monaco's ports by reducing the amount of fuel used by ships.
This project is the concrete result of efforts made to integrate the concerns of the SEPM and the Monaco State to develop rigorous marina management in line with sustainable development policy.
In addition to this project, SMEG worked with SEPM to draw up a master plan for the development of the electrical needs of Monaco ports, which will help to define the projects to be carried out in the coming years.
SMEG is therefore pursuing its efforts to propose solutions aimed at modernising the capacity of Monaco ports.