Greece should aim for a more ambitious wind energy objective in its National Energy and Climate Plan for 2030, WindEurope’s Head of Advocacy & Messaging Joël Meggelaars has remarked following favorable results achieved at Greece’s second RES auction for the year, staged a week ago.

Onshore wind secured almost 160 MW of capacity in Greece’s recent second renewables auction for the year. The prices were competitive, coming in within a range of €55–65/MWh.

This price level is lower than in Greece’s first onshore wind auction in July, where onshore wind prices ranged between €68-72/MWh.

“These are impressive results. The average price level is even lower than in the last French and German onshore auctions. The fact that prices have come down is a signal of confidence from investors in the outlook for wind energy in Greece. The high level of competition and the participation of big investors with large wind portfolios in Greece and the wider region has helped to create downward pressure on prices,” Meggelaars noted.

Nine wind projects, all holding environmental and grid connection licenses and located in Greece’s north and central regions, secured capacities at last week’s session.

“These results are a clear sign that wind can deliver affordable electricity to Greek consumers and businesses,” the WindEurope official noted. “Ambition and deployment outlook will help Greece to attract new investments, enjoy further cost reductions and create local economic benefits.”

However, permit costs for wind farms in Greece remain an issue and need to be simplified, Meggelaars stressed.

“The winners in this auction already anticipated these costs as they began developing their projects almost a decade ago. The Greek government should look at simplifying permit procedures and also give more transparency on the length of time needed for environmental assessment, spatial planning and grid connection procedures.”