The (Dii) has acquired its 18th new partner. It has added the Italian national grid operater to the expanding international group that is promoting the large-scale development of renewable energy in the deserts of North Africa and the Middle East, with a view to developing "green" electricity exports to Europe. <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Helvetica, helvetica, hirakakupro-w3, osaka, 'ms pgothic', sans-serif; font-size: 12px; "><span style="font: 12.0px Helvetica"> </span>"We are very pleased to be part of the Desertec project", Flavio Cattaneo, the CEO of Terna, said yesterday in a <a href="http://www.dii-eumena.com/fileadmin/Daten/press/10-09-30_Terna_joins_Dii_EN_Final.pdf">statement</a>. "The mission and goals of the initiative are fully shared and supported by Terna."</span> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Helvetica, helvetica, hirakakupro-w3, osaka, 'ms pgothic', sans-serif; font-size: 12px; ">"Apart from creating a framework for power generation in desert regions, power transmissions from North Africa to the European markets is another important element for Desertec," he explained.</span>