Energy exchange establishment June 18, LAGIE approval today

Today’s anticipated approval by the LAGIE (Electricity Market Operator) board of a new subsidiary will mark the beginning of a 40-day process – approximately – leading to the notarization of the energy exchange company’s establishment on June 18, if all goes according to plan.

Following today’s LAGIE endorsement, the new company will be registered at the General Commercial Registry (GEMI), the single electronic commercial registry.

A compulsory one-month waiting period will follow before a LAGIE general meeting is held on June 15 to formalize decisions on various related matters that will have already been resolved going into the meeting.

Any problems that may be encountered by prospective energy exchange company shareholders will be indentified and resolved by the June 15 date, according to the overall procedure’s schedule.

Any interested parties with issues will be excluded and the energy exchange company will be established with all legitimate candidates on board.

A combination of market operators and private-sector enterprises, numbering six in total, are expected to make up the energy exchange’s shareholder line-up. LAGIE (22%); IPTO, the power grid operator (20%); and DESFA, the natural gas grid operator (7%); are expected to be joined by three private-sector companies, the Athens Stock Market (21%); EBRD (21%); and the Cyprus Stock Exchange (10%).

The private sector companies will need to control at least 51 percent of the new energy exchange company as a means of ensuring it steers clear of various bailout-related staff and flexibility restrictions imposed on public-sector enterprises.

All the aforementioned prospective shareholders will most likely be ready to sign the energy exchange’s founding act on June 18. If not, the company will be established with all legitimate contenders. The private sector’s overall majority stake will be maintained in this case, too.

Then, within a three-month period following its establishment, the Energy Exchange will need to be certified by RAE, the Regulatory Authority for Energy, as a market operator for the transition period leading to the implementation of the target model.

The target model envisions market coupling, or harmonization of EU wholesale markets.