The country’s energy-intensive industrial sector has called for the abolishment of a minimum-offer rule imposed on electricity producers, believing this requirement is distorting prices and affecting levels of competitiveness.

The request, agreed to at a recent EVIKEN (Association of Industrial Energy Consumers) meeting, would help improve operating terms and support rather than undermine industrial output, the association believes.

The industrial sector believes the minimum-offer rule imposed on electricity producers is significantly increasing prices, especially during low-demand hours, compared to price levels elsewhere in Europe.

Major-scale consumers could decrease their energy costs during low-demand hours but are forced to buy energy at high prices, which is affecting levels of competitiveness.

The industrial sector wants the lifting of the minimum-offer rule incorporated into Greece’s bailout-required electricity market reforms, intended to allign the country with the target model, aiming for a single European electricity market.

Besides target model-related revisions, the industrial sector is also anticipating an extension to the demand response mechanism (interruptability), which expired at the end of September.

According to government sources, a technical review of the extension plan haas been completed and discussions with European Commission officials are at an advanced stage.

The mechanism enables major industrial enterprises to be compensated when the TSO (ADMIE/IPTO) requests that they shift their energy usage by lowering or stopping consumption during high-demand peak hours so as to balance the electricity system’s needs.