climate change

CO2 rights market now in right shape, Brussels officials note

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A market stability reserve introduced to fix CO2 emission rights market irregularities detected earlier this decade is now offering more effective protection against potentially dangerous extreme fluctuations, European Commission officials noted at a Brussels news conference.

“The adjustments have been implemented and are working. We’re not claiming that the CO2 market is working because of the revisions, as, in actual fact, this is a market system. Market forces are determining prices,” a Brussels official pointed out. “Obviously, we will see CO2 emission right price increases amid economic growth and increased productivity,” the official added.

The CO2 emission rights market is fundamental to the EU’s decarbonization targets, European Commission officials stressed.

It is no longer necessary, following the Paris Agreement (COP21), to keep explaining why more needs to be done about climate change, Brussels officials highlighted.

CO2 emission right prices reached as high as 26 euros per ton in recent times but, last week, deescalated to levels of around 16 euros per ton.

As a country whose energy system remains heavily reliant on lignite-based electricity production, Greece is among the EU member states currently restricted to less ambitious decarbonization targets. A slower transformation process is needed.

 

Climate change commitments to be reviewed at NYC summit next week

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Three years following the signing of the historic COP21 agreement in Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron, Secretary-General of the United Nations António Guterres, the President of the World Bank Group Jim Yong Kim, and United Nations Special Envoy for Climate Action Michael R. Bloomberg will co-host the Second One Planet Summit in New York City next week.

The summit will review the commitments made at the first One Planet Summit on December 12, 2017, and will further accelerate the implementation of the Paris Agreement by putting finance in service of climate action. It will contribute to strengthening multilateral collaboration, building trust between public and private actors, to ensure a collective response to the climate change.

Speakers will include many heads of State and Government, business leaders, economists and representatives of civil society.

In light of the emergency caused by the ecological, social and economic impacts of climate change, climate challenge is a shared responsibility that requires the mobilization of and cooperation between everyone: governments, the public and private sectors, and civil society, the summit’s organizers noted in a statement.  Following the 2018 Global Climate Action Summit in San Francisco and ahead of the COP24 Conference in Katowice and the 2019 UNSG Climate Action Summit, the second One Planet Summit will be a crucial step for raising ambitions and accelerating the protection of our planet, the organizers added.

The summit is scheduled to take place from 2 pm to 4:30 pm on September 26 at New York City’s Plaza Hotel, following the second annual Bloomberg Global Business Forum and alongside the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly.

“Climate action requires a collective response. Discipline and ambition are essential. We are going through challenging times, but solutions are everywhere, all over the world. We must act together to foster innovation, boost transformative projects, gather public and private investments, and deliver on our promises for the next generations. The time has come. It is our priority, both economically and politically. We are ready now for this shared action,” stated French President Emmanuel Macron.

“New York City has long been a place where the world comes together to solve big problems – and climate change is one of the most urgent. Since last year’s summit, we’ve taken important steps forward to reduce carbon emissions and improve people’s lives, by cleaning the air, growing the economy, and creating jobs. This year’s summit is a chance to accelerate that progress and spread the health and economic benefits of climate action to more people around the world,” remarked Michael R. Bloomberg, founder of Bloomberg LP and Bloomberg Philanthropies, mayor of New York City from 2002-2013, UN Special Envoy for Climate Action and WHO Global Ambassador for Noncommunicable Diseases.

The inaugural One Planet Summit gathered more than 4,000 participants to accelerate the implementation of the Paris Agreement and to engage public and private actors in the fight against climate change. Twelve international commitments were made, bringing together some thirty coalitions and initiatives, based on three key fields of action: increasing finance for climate change adaptation and resilience; accelerating the transition towards a low-carbon economy; and firmly positioning climate challenges at the heart of finance.

The 2018 Summit will provide an opportunity to review progress made in implementing these commitments and to strengthen trust and collaboration among actors in order to foster ambitious new initiatives.

“Climate change is the most pressing challenge facing humankind. Strong leadership is needed urgently. We must use every opportunity – including the One Planet Summit and the high-level session of the United Nations General Assembly – to mobilize world leaders for ambitious and immediate climate action. The facts are clear and alarming: climate change continues to move faster than our efforts to address it. We must all do far more in order to win this race for our future,” underlined António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations.

“The goals of the Paris Agreement are critical to sustaining the global fight against poverty. Commitment to climate action is strong, investment is growing, and the Paris goals are within our reach. But we need to accelerate progress. The public and private sectors must work together more effectively to coordinate policy reforms that boost investment. This will help us create new markets for climate action, especially in the developing countries that need it most,” underlined World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim.

The program of the 2018 Summit is structured to develop a One Planet Roadmap for climate action and green finance that can help align forces along the most strategic pathways to success, including: collaborating and sharing solutions to deliver local, national, and global action; investing in the transition to low-emissions and inclusive economies; and protecting vulnerable populations through innovative technologies and nature-based solutions and the restoration of ecosystems.

Heads of State and Government, business leaders, as well as other civil society actors who have already confirmed their participation at the One Planet Summit 2018 include: Prime Minister of New Zealand, Jacinda Ardern; Leontino Balbo Junior, Executive Vice-President of Native; Mark Carney, Governor of the Bank of England; Aliko Dangote, Founder and Chair of the Dangote Group; Valdis Dombrovskis, Vice-President of the European Commission; Bill Gates, Co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; President of Togo, Faure Gnassingbé; President of the Republic of the Marshall Islands Dr. Hilda C. Heine; Christine Lagarde, Managing Director and Chair of the International Monetary Fund; Luis Alberto Moreno, President of the Inter-American Development Bank; H.E. Yasir Othman Al-Rumayyan, Chief Executive, Secretary-General, and Managing Director, Public Investment Fund; Paul Polman, CEO of Unilever; Prime Minister of Norway, Erna Solberg; Tri Rismaharini, Mayor of Surabaya, Indonesia; and Professor Johan Rockström, Director Designate of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research.

The program will be presented and moderated by Arianna Huffington, Founder and CEO of Thrive Global.

Official hashtag: #OnePlanetSummit

For general inquiries: APCO Worldwide
oneplanetsummit@apcoworldwide.com
Elysée: secretariat.presse@elysee.fr
United Nations: Shepard@un.org
World Bank Group: msheikh1@worldbankgroup.org
Bloomberg: press@BloombergGBF.com

 

 

 

 

 

CO2 Challenge enters next stage, project partners announce

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The CO2 Challenge, seeking to find and scale technologies capable of reducing vessel greenhouse gas emissions by ten per cent, is gaining momentum and moving into the second stage, project partners Cargill, Rainmaking and DNV GL announced at the recent SMM trade fair in Hamburg.

The first in-person meetings with start-ups providing innovative technologies were conducted at the stand maintained by DNV GL, a global quality assurance and risk management company.   

“We’ve had a positive response to the CO2 Challenge,” said George Wells, Global Head of Assets and Structuring at Cargill. “We had the opportunity to meet some of the start-ups in person at SMM and are impressed with the technologies and new ideas. As the CO2 Challenge continues, we are confident that we will continue to see interesting options. We launched the CO2 Challenge because our industry must innovate to improve our environmental performance. The solutions are there – we just need to uncover and implement them.”

Since the project was announced in June 2018, the CO2 Challenge has received some 70 applicants from 20 different countries; the scouting process uncovered a further 68 start-ups. The project team, which consists of representatives from DNV GL, Cargill and Rainmaking, is in the process of interviewing applicants. The CO2 Challenge has received a wide variety of technical applications, including wind propulsion, engine optimization, digital, air lubrication, hull optimization and more.

“DNV GL is very proud to be working with a partner like Cargill, who are demonstrating their vision for more efficient and environmentally responsibility maritime operations,” noted Trond Hodne, DNV GL – Maritime Sales and Marketing Director. “The SMM in Hamburg is the perfect venue for moving the CO2 Challenge onto the next stage. With its emphasis on innovation, technology and sustainability, the SMM shows how our industry is moving forward on these issues. But for sustainability to be realised, we need to make sure that new solutions are grounded in solid engineering and meet required safety standards. DNV GL, as a trusted and impartial technical expert, will work with Cargill to make sure that we meet this challenge.”

The CO2 Challenge is still open to new applicants until 17 September 2018.

(Pictured are, left to right: Trond Hodne, DNV GL – Maritime Sales and Marketing Director; George Wells, Global Head of Assets and Structuring at Cargill; and Alex Farcet, Partner, Rainmaking.)

For further information, visit www.co2-challenge.com

 

Numerous fires not coincidental, World Economic Forum notes

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Major blazes affecting areas traditionally not on the fire-danger map are prompting questions for answers to this unprecedented phenomenon. A total of 11 wildfires are currently blazing in the Arctic circle, an article published by the World Economic Forum, citing a related story run by The Guardian, has pointed out.

Fires are raging in Russia, Norway and Finland, while Sweden, experiencing the most extensive Arctic fires, has been forced to evacuate four communities, according to The Guardian.

Two Italian water-bombing planes that answered Sweden’s call for help are scheduled to begin operating today. Sweden has requested even more planes and helicopters from the EU.

“This is definitely the worst year in recent times for forest fires. Whilst we get them every year, 2018 is shaping up to be excessive,” noted Mike Peacock, a university researcher and Uppsula resident.

This year’s fires in Sweden cover a much larger area than fires in past years. The blazes are a consequence of a heat wave that is bringing unusually hot, dry weather to much of Europe, prompting major fire outbreaks far beyond Europe’s Mediterranean firezone, EU officials are pointing out.

The European Forest Fire Information System has warned that fire conditions will persist in central and northern Europe over the next few weeks.

Scientists say the increase in northern fires is another sign of climate change.

“What we’re seeing with this global heatwave is that these areas of fire susceptibility are now broadening, with the moors in northwest England and now these Swedish fires a consequence of that,” professor of global change ecology at the Open University Vincent Gauci commented.

“Both these areas are typically mild and wet which allows forests and peatlands to develop quite large carbon stores,” he said. “When such carbon-dense ecosystems experience aridity and heat and there is a source of ignition – lightning or people – fires will happen.”

The European Arctic is not the only part of the far north seeing increased fire activity.

Two recent fires brought the total number of fires in Alaska’s Galena Zone have burned 44,000 acres to date.

This year’s fires come a year after Europe had its worst fire season in recorded history, though 2017’s most devastating fires were in the more typically fire-susceptible countries of Italy, Portugal and Spain, where they burned thousands of hectares of agricultural land and forests into November.

In Greece, devastating wildfires that broke out on Monday west and northeast of Athens and have so far led to over 70 deaths, have emerged as the latest fire disaster to hit Europe’s south.

 

RAE seeks power generator licensing improvements

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RAE, the Regulatory Authority for Energy, has taken action aimed at improving licensing procedures for the installation of power generators.

The matter has been the cause of friction between the authority and PPC, the main power utility, which, in the past, has criticized RAE for delaying the issuance of licenses needed to install power generators on islands. PPC argued these delays have negatively impacted the power utility and electricity consumers on islands.

PPC has also criticized the regulatory authority for failing to recognize transportation and installation costs concerning mobile power generators used on non-interconnected islands. The power utility had undertaken such initiatives without previous approval from RAE. Costs for such ventures are recoverable only in cases for which production licences have been issued.

The dispute between the two sides, dating back to 2016, was eventually resolved but matters concerning the issuance of licenses, especially the need to hasten the process, remained pending.

It remains to be seen whether the new framework decided on by RAE will help hasten licensing procedures.

RAE has pointed out that restrictions concerning the use of mobile power generators, which run on diesel and mazut, are necessary as a result of EU climate change policies and emission targets set by the Paris climate accord.

 

 

EU climate change action may lower PPC lignite unit prices

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A European Commission proposal for tougher CO2 emission limits on units qualifying for CAT remuneration, which, if followed through, could stop older lignite-fired facilities from receiving CAT payments for output, threatens to impact the market price of main power utility PPC lignite units included in a bailout-required sale package.

The level of any new CO2 emission limits that may be imposed will be crucial in determining the CAT cut-off point for lignite units.

According to sources, prospective investors considering the PPC lignite unit sale raised questions, during a recent market test, as to whether the units being offered (Meliti, Megalopoli III & IV) will remain eligible for CATs.

A European movement campaigning against the use of coal is growing. This drive includes powerhouse nations and players. In recent comments delivered at the Davos summit, French president Emmanuel Macron said France is determined to lead the way against the use of coal. France, as well as Italy, the UK and the Netherlands have all decided to gradually withdraw lignite-fired units from their respective energy mixes over the next few years.

In Germany, climate change and commitments concerning the withdrawal of lignite units from the country’s grid have developed into key negotiation issues between the CDU and SPD parties in their effort to establish a coalition.

At present, Poland, besides Greece, remains the only firm supporter of lignite use in Europe.

These developments are expected to negatively impact the level of investor interest in PPC’s sale package of lignite units as well as sale prices.

This was exemplified in a sale of lignite units last year by Vattenfal to Czech fund EPH, carried out at a loss for the Swedish company, which was determined to reduce its portfolio’s exposure to coal and lignite.

Based on the old CAT mechanism, PPC received approximately 400 million euros per year. The Meliti unit, part of the sale package, received 13.95 million euros, annually, while the yearly CATs for Megalopoli III and IV amounted to 11.51 million euros and 12.91 million euros, respectively, under the old system.

 

 

Greece committed to clean energy on islands, PM tells EU forum in Crete

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Greece has already adopted an active role in European environmental protection issues, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras stressed in a speech delivered today at an inaugural forum held in Hania, Crete, to launch a Clean Energy for EU Islands Initiative.

He described the inaugural EU event’s choice of location, Crete, Greece’s largest island, as a highly symbolic move for the clean island energy initiative.

“This EU initiative is being launched in a country whose government is determined to implement the Paris climate accord swiftly and thoroughly,” Tsipras told the forum. “We have taken environmental and climate protection from the political agenda’s sidelines to the core of the search as to how our society may progress in the future. We have turned long-term energy planning into a political priority, despite the seven-year economic and social crisis from which we are now emerging,” the Greek leader continued.

Tsipras also stated that Greece is the EU’s only lignite producing member state pressuring for the implementation of stricter emission limits.

 

Greece losing climate change ground, academic warns

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Greece’s effort to remain an active participant in international developments concerning climate change has lost momentum in more recent times, leaving the country behind, a leading academic in Greece has stressed in an interview with energypress ahead of a UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) conference scheduled to take place in Athens on September 7 and 8.

“Of course, there have been times when greater efforts were made. At one point in the past, environmental diplomacy did enjoy foreign ministry backing and there has been a period during which a governmental effort for greater support and participation at UN and EU discussions for more advanced climate change policies was made,” noted Andreas Papandreou, an Associate Professor in the Economics Department of the University of Athens. “This effort has subsided in more recent times amid the influence of the crisis. I would say that, at this stage, political emphasis is not been placed on the issue.”

Papandreou also pointed out that economists of all political leanings now consider absolutely necessary a strong political reaction with the aim of limiting greenhouse gas emissions.

The academic spoke about various forces obstructing the implementation of political decisions in this domain and also urged fellow academics to raise their voices and relay their specialized knowledge in a form that may allow citizens to gain a better understanding of climate change dangers.

China undisputed climate change, RES leader following US withdrawal

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The US withdrawal from the 2015 Paris climate agreement, announced yesterday by the recently elected President Donald Trump, leaves China as the world’s undisputed leader in the quest to reduce CO2 emissions and promote renewable energy production.

Trump’s decision comes at a time when the EU has set ambitious targets concerning RES development, CO2 emission reductions and energy efficiency, and China has poured the greatest amounts to achieve such objectives.

The world’s main greengouse gas polluters, namely the US, China and EU member states, carry greater responsibility on the global stage as their behavior sets the example for others.

The US withdrawal will impact the Paris climate agreement on a number of levels. The international pact, which, prior to yesterday, was missing just Syria and Nicaragua, has now been left without the support of the world’s biggest ever CO2 polluter, and second biggest at present. The US will not be subject to any restrictions concerning emission reductions until 2020, at least. This prospect, along with other similar-minded US initiatives taken by the Tump-led US administration, including its withdrawn support for climate change research, all combine to mean that the US will, from now on, be left to walk in isolation.

Certain pundits contend that, depsite yesterday’s US walkout, the global trend towards clean energy and emission reduction policies also makes economic sense and, as a result, will continue being supported in the US, regardless of Trump’s intentions.

The US President’s climate pact withdrawal is also expected to make major political impact on an international scale, providing further impetus for China’s development as the world leader. The amounts invested by this country to counter climate change are staggering.

China is seeking to establish a new model for economic and industrial growth, which the country will aim to export along with its technology. The Chinese model shares certain similarities when compared to its European equivalent but many aspects differ. The absence of the US in this department will allow China to move freeely and have a greater influence on global developments.

At the same time, Trump’s climate change isolation should enable the US to export fossil fuels at competitive prices, which, to a certain degree, will affect the RES sector’s level of competitiveness.

The main objective of the Paris climate agreement is to limit global warming to a maximum average of 2 degrees Celsius. The absence of the US from the pact for at least four years, or eight if Trump is re-elected for a second term, greatly reduces the probability of this target being achieved, given the scale of the US. This increases the threat of irreparable environmental damage in the future.

 

 

Job losses feared at PPC as a result of carbon’s diminishing role

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The anticipated withdrawal of main power utility PPC carbon-fired units from the country’s energy mix over the next few years, needed as part of the EU effort to meet CO2 emission reduction targets, is expected to not only diminish the utility’s production capacity and number of clients, but the size of its workforce as well.

The fear of job losses is being widely felt across the corporation, from PPC’s workers at the utility mines to management.

Though the subject of PPC’s looming job losses is being avoided at an official level, it has become commonly known within the utility’s ranks that the withdrawal of a capacity totalling 1,800 MW – 1,200 MW at Kardia and 600 MW at Amynteo, both in northern Greece – will make redundant the staff members associated with these operations.

In two years from now, the total capacity of PPC’s coal-fired facilities will have contracted to 2,200 MW from 4,000 MW at present.

PPC’s workforce will be oversized even if Greece manages to keep the carbon-fired proportion of the country’s energy mix at a level of 25 percent, experts have already pointed out.

However, it should also be noted that mining specific coal amounts these days requires more work than in the past as all high-density carbon deposits have been extracted from the exisiting mines. Workers now need to process greater amounts of earth, measuring between 5 and 7 cubic meters, on average, in order to extract one ton of coal, compared to 3 cubic meters in previous years.

A considerable number of PPC workers are approaching retirement age, which should help the utility’s downsize effort. PPC has already offered 15,000-eupo bonus packages to some 200 staff members who have qualified for retirement but opted to carry on working.

PPC’s prospective downsize could serve as a model for other state-controlled companies and utilities.

 

 

Coal’s role in country’s energy mix down to 20%-25% by 2030

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The contraction of coal in the country’s energy mix to a level of between 20 and 25 percent by 2030 is considered an inevitable development, as was strongly suggested by energy minister Giorgos Stathakis just days ago on a visit to the counry’s north in a bid to appease local fears prompted by the main power utility PPC’s bailout-required prospective sale of coal-fired units.

Citing the EU’s policy aiming for a break away from a reliance on solid fuels, Greece’s energy minister reiterated that the government’s intention is to preserve the state-controlled PPC’s strategic role in the country’s energy market. Details were not offered.

“Coal will not represent [as little as] 10 percent [of the energy mix] by 2030, nor will it stand at 35 percent, but, instead, will continue to represent a strong part of the mix – it doesn’t really matter if this will be 20, 25 or 30 percent – and serve as the basis of our energy system. Renewable energy contributions will have risen,” the energy minister told local officials in Greece’s north, prompting new concerns.

The bulk of PPC’s coal-fired power stations are located in northern Greece.

The energy minister did not offer any comments on the thousands of prospective job losses – direct and indirect – at PPC’s coal-fired power stations and mines in the wider region.

However, Stathakis did note that various changes – implying structural changes – would be needed at PPC if the utility is to maintain its strategic role in the years to come.

According to sources, PPC may include Ptolemaida 5 in its bailout-required sale package proposals. Not expected to be launched until 2020, this prospective unit has, until now, been viewed as a key part of the utility’s future plans.

PPC has so far invested roughly 500 million euros in this project. It is believed that the utility could be willing to sell the unit if this amount, plus a premium factoring in its value and operating potential, is offered by investors.

Greek, Cypriot, Israeli common climate change action discussed

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Greek, Cypriot and Israeli officials making up a working group on climate change, a front being tackled by all three countries in unison, will convene today for a meeting at the Greek energy ministry.

As part of a strategic decision made by all three countries, Greece, Cyprus and Israel are coordinating their efforts and taking joint action in various fields, including climate change, prompting three-way meetings on a regular basis.

Approximately twelve climate change experts, as well as officials and representatives of the three countries are expected to take part in today’s working group.

The framework concerning common climate change action being taken by the three countries is detailed in a joint declaration of intent for environmental issues, signed last April by the energy ministers of Greece, Cyprus and Israel.

Issues to be addressed at today’s meeting include assessements of where the three countries stand in terms of respective knowhow on climate change adjustment planning, while the establishment of a prospective central observatory to monitor climate change and administer adjustments will also be discussed.

Subjects to be discussed at forthcoming meetings include defining specific fields of cooperation and establishing water resource impact models.

Greece, Cyprus and Israel decided to stage today’s meeting last December during a three-way meeting in Israel involving the environment ministers of all three countries.

 

China taking CO2, RES lead as Trump’s US prepares to back coal industry

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The Chinese government has decided to cancel plans concerning the construction of 104 new coal-fired power stations in 13 provinces, whose development would have provided an additional capacity of 120 GW. Placed within an international context, the decision is impressive. The total installed capacity of coal-fired units in the USA, preparing for a new administration led by the coal-friendly President-elect Donald Trump, amounts to 305 GW.

China’s objective, as announced by the government, is to spur renewable energy growth as a means of tackling the country’s pollution problem. Beijing intends to invest 365 billion dollars in RES development by 2020, which the Chinese government expects will create 13 million new jobs for the sector and provide an additional capacity of 130 GW through wind and solar farms. China has set itself the objective of generating 50 percent of the country’s electricity production through hydropower, RES and nuclear means, all free of CO2 emissions, within the next decade.

China’s decision to lessen its reliance on CO2-emitting electricity production possibly represents a pivotal point in the country’s energy and climate change history, while also being highly symbolic, as it comes just days ahead of the inauguration of Trump, who has repeatedly expressed strong support for fossil fuels, particularly coal. The Presiedent-elect has declared that he may choose to not honor the international climate change agreement reached in Paris just over a year ago. He also intends to nullify numerous RES-supporting initiatives taken by the outgoing President Barack Obama.

Trump set to nullify Obama’s climate change policies, RES framework

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The energy policies to be pursued by US President-elect Donald Trump, according to a memo leaked just days ago by the Center for Media and Democracy, a nonprofit liberal watchdog and advocacy organization, promise to press the reset button on President Barack Obama’s climate change policies, including his contribution to the Paris Agreement as well as RES legal framework.

Trump has already appointed a supporter of fossil fuels to head the country’s Environmental Proteection Agency.

The USA’s commitment to the Paris Agreement, adopted precisely one year ago, was described as “deeply problematic” in the leaked memo, signed by Thomas Pyle, Trump’s energy transition head.

The next US leader, according to the memo, also plans to nullify the Obama administration’s RES legal framework.

The findings of a study on the effects of greenhouse gas emissions will also be reexamined and possibly cancelled, according to the memo.

PM may either follow or offer fresh ideas at Paris conference

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Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, who is scheduled to have fifteen minutes of speaking time to project his views at the upcoming UN Climate Change Conference in Paris, to be held November 30 to December 11, faces the choice of either generalizing his way through his speech and adopting wider European positions or rising to the occasion and announcing a truly ambitious Greek program.

Should Tsipras opt to present groundbreaking policies “this ought to be not because the US president and leaders of other major economies are doing so, but because Greek society truly requires such an approach for its future generations,” noted Takis Grigoriou, environmental change head official at the local Greenpeace branch.

The Paris conference, being widely described as humanity’s last chance to restrict any additional global warming to less than two degrees celcius, comes following a series of initiatives taken by leaders of major economies, who appear to be announcing policies intended to reduce fossil fuel dependence. Examples include the US, China, India, as well as certain European countries, such as Sweden and Denmark. Just days ago, the US President Barack Obama cancelled plans for the Keystone oil pipeline, despite strong opposition from the oil industry. The project, which had been planned to run from Canada through the US, faced heavy criticism from environmentalists.

Tsipras will travel to Paris as the leader of a nation that has little to show in renewable energy source (RES) progress over the past few years, except for recent legislation encouraging photovoltaic self-production. On the contrary, the only investments being pushed in Greece at this stage concern further fossil fuel development.

Although the Greek economy is small and any initiatives taken by the country can only have minimal impact on global developments, a prudent local energy policy could reinforce the national economy and, by extension, society. Global climate change authorities contend that even smaller countries have the opportunity to play key roles at international conferences such as the imminent Paris event, if they choose to present groundbreaking ideas or policies.