Environment, Energy & Climate Change Deputy Minister Makis Papageorgiou, one of several key speakers at the inaugural “Energy Dialogues” event in Athens today, noted that difficult decisions have been made for the electricity market’s restructuring, which the coalition now needed to fully implement.

The Deputy Minister told the “Energy Dialogues” event, co-organized by energypress and the Hellenic Energy Regulation Institute (HERI), that the government needs to focus on strategic planning for increased competitiveness and investments, multi-sided dialogue for the establishment of a thorough strategic plan, and respectful treatment of citizens and consumers, who have shouldered the weight of the ongoing effort to restructure.

“The government has dared to speak the language of truth amid difficult times. The decisions made have kept the energy market standing,” Papageorgiou stressed. “Growth will be based on sturdy groundwork from here on.”

The electricity sector, previously a domain of irregular activity, now figured centrally amid the country’s growth model, the minister noted.

“We wanted the confrontation of problems to have a structural, rather than a corrective, nature. We have covered considerable ground along the way to restructuring,” said Papageorgiou.

The government, combining forces with RAE, the Regulatory Authority for Energy, has reshaped the electricity market’s regulatory framework, whose benefits are worth 110 million euros, Papageorgiou assserted. Imminent developments in the new year include revisions in the wholesale market, NOME-type auctions to intensify competition, as well as the completion of public consultation procedures for the Capacity Assurance Mechanism to increase capacity flexibility in electricity production.

“Changes in the wholesale market, combined with privatizations, will create new opportunities and investments,” the deputy minister noted.

“Energy Dialogues”, a thematic series whose inaugural event, today, focused on the restructuring of the Greek electricity market, will continue with future editions, their aim being to enrich and deepen domestic public discussion on current matters concerning and influencing all aspects of the Greek energy market.