EDEY paving the way for hydrocarbon surveys in north

EDEY, the Greek Hydrocarbon Management Company, is preparing the ground for exploration work in the country’s north, in the Grevena area, as well as the wider west Macedonia region, through processing of seismic surveys and dialogue with local communities.

EDEY’s head official Yiannis Basias offered an indication of the hydrocarbon management company’s next steps at a recent signing ceremony for offshore licenses in the Ionian Sea and Block 10, off western Peloponnese.

He stressed that onshore areas also need to be explored, indicating Grevena would be one of these. The geological features of the Grevena region represent a continuation of Albanian territory being explored by multinational Shell.

Besides the potential of discovering hydrocarbon reserves, EDEY’s interest in Grevena and the west Macedonia region is also linked to a plan to replace lignite mining activities of the past, gradually winding down as a result of the EU’s decarbonization policies. Lignite deposits contain methane, which could be utilized in the domestic market and encourage entrepreneurial activities for continued regional economic growth and employment.

An older round of offshore licenses offered through a series of tenders staged by EDEY, beginning in 2012 with the Gulf of Patras license, will be completed with competitions for two blocks west and southwest of Crete, launched in 2017.