The draft of a ministerial decision prepared by the Environment and Energy Ministry on details determining the starting price of the upcoming NOME auctions, a crucial aspect to make or break the auctions, is now being examined from a legal perspective.

According to energypress sources, the ministerial decision will be released within the next few days, signaling a green light for the first NOME auction in September.

NOME auctions are intended to provide third parties with access to main power utility PPC’s low-cost lignite and hydropower sources as a measure to help break the utility’s dominance.

The same sources said that RAE, the Regulatory Authority for Energy, has recommended a starting price of around 38 euros per MWh. If so, independent suppliers will most certainly be discontent as they have been anticipating a starting price level that is well below the current System Marginal Price (SMP).

The formula chosen to determine the starting price will take into account the variable costs of PPC’s lignite and hydropower stations and their respective proportions to electricity production.

Delivery of electricity amounts purchased at September’s first NOME auction will be made within the final quarter of the year. The auctions are expected to spark the beginning of full-on competition in Greece’s retail electricity market and drastically reduce PPC’s market share, a bailout requirement.

PPC’s chief executive Manolis Panagiotakis recently announced that a new retail company will be carved out of the existing utility and sold, with 400,000 customers on board, to other suppliers. No follow-up action has since been reported.