Greece aims to stand among leaders of green energy efforts in Europe

Last December, Greece made an ambitious step in order to fully align with the European Green Deal. Through the government’s €44 billion National Energy and Climate Strategy, Greece raised its renewable energy generation target to 35% of total energy mix by 2030. “If you combine this target with the decarbonization policy, you will understand that Greece wants to become a green pioneer in the EU,” reflected Kostis Hatzidakis, Minister of Environment and Energy. . “On one hand we will adopt the European agenda to liberalize our markets, and on the other we will implement a really green approach to the sector.”

At the heart of Greece’s decarbonization policy is a multipronged effort to tackle fossil fuels, which currently contribute 70% to national energy generation. The majority of fossil fuel production derives from the national electricity provider, Public Power Company, which is now spearheading new green projects with private sector players, like Volterra.

“This is the first time that PPC has partnered with a private company in a project of this scale,” announces Panos Nikou, CEO of Volterra. “The €60 million investment plan includes the operation of two 16MW wind farms and the further construction of two wind farms of 53.7MW with 15 wind turbines and a new substation,” says Nikou. “Volterra manages a portfolio of 400MW of projects,” adds Nikou. “Currently we serve thousands of residential and business customers supplying them with more than 1,000,000 MWh annually.”

This commitment towards more transparent development is a key pillar in the development of Greece’s broader energy market ambitions. The long-awaited completion of the Greek portion of the €4.5 billion cross-border Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) will convert Greece into a regional energy hub. To manage this new energy market, the Hellenic Energy Exchange (HENEX) was established in 2018. “Establishing the natural gas market within HENEX would be a huge step for the energy sector, that would build upon of the new developments of TAP and all the other new pipelines,” says George Ioannou, CEO of HENEX. “In this new landscape, all of this will give a boost to the transactions at the exchange level.”