PV groups opt to file RES payment delay cases against operator, PPC

SPEF and PSAF, both photovoltaic producer associations, have requested their representative lawyers to take legal action on their behalf against LAGIE, the Electricity Market Operator, and the main power utility PPC over delayed payments to PV producers for output, board members of the two associations have informed energypress.

Both PV associations recently chose to suspend plans for legal action following a meeting with PPC chief executive Manolis Panagiotakis, who promised PV production payment delays would be dealt with. This expectation, however, failed to come through, prompting the associations to end their waiting periods and order legal action.

The PV associations intend to accuse LAGIE of delaying planned legal challenges against the electricity market operators IPTO and HEDNO, both subsidiaries of the main power utility PPC.

As for PPC, the PV associations, in their legal challenges, will accuse the power utility of withholding RES-supporting surcharge payments received through electricity bills. The PV associations will argue that PPC is not relaying these RES-supporting amounts to IPTO and HEDNO, part of the process before the amounts reach LAGIE, but instead using the money for other utility needs, which, ultimately, is depriving RES producers of entitled payments.

The two associations estimate RES-supporting amounts that have been collected by PPC but not relayed to IPTO and HEDNO – before being passed on to LAGIE and the RES producers – at around 350 to 400 million euros.