An auction offering compensation amounts to high and medium-voltage consumers for electricity usage reductions of 5 percent during peak hours, an order that needs to be met by all EU member states this winter, will be launched on January 18 and 19 by power grid operator IPTO, the operator has announced.

Industrial consumers submitting lowest compensation amounts requested in return for their electricity consumption cuts will qualify for this mechanism, which will remain valid until March 31, 2023, when a commitment made by all EU member states to limit respective industrial electricity demand during peak hours will expire.

Greek authorities have defined the evening hours between 6 pm and 9 pm as the country’s peak hours.

Compensation amounts to be awarded to the winning bidders are planned to stem from the Energy Transition Fund.  An upper limit of 400 euros per MWh has been set for the mechanism’s bidding process.