GEK-TERNA

PPC pressuring ministry on Amynteo power station’s future

Posted on by admin

The main power utility PPC is maneuvering to increase the pressure on the government for action that would ensure the inclusion of the power utility’s lignite-fired Amynteo power station in the country’s energy mix over the coming years, secure its environmental upgrade and attract investors for its sustained utilization.

PPC appears to remain unconvinced of the government’s intentions to keep the Amynteo power station alive despite assurances from energy minister Giorgos Stathakis that the facility’s two units, totaling 600 MW, have been factored into the country’s electricity production calculations until 2030.

PPC is demanding a study as verification of the government’s Amynteo plan.

A 17,500-hour operating time limit imposed on the Amynteo power station by the European Commission for environmental reasons expired just over a month ago but Greek authorities have decided to sustain its operations while working on a revamp plan that would enable the unit to keep operating. Brussels is believed to be gearing up a sanctions procedure but it would typically move along at a slow pace.

The Mytilineos group, Gek Terna, Copelouzos and Intrakat have all expressed interest for involvement in an Amynteo upgrade.

The national energy and climate plan, currently undergoing public consultation, projects an installed capacity reduction of fossil fuel-fired power stations from 4.3 GW to 3.4 GW in 2020. A slight rise to 3.5 GW is foreseen for 2025 before this capacity is slashed to 2.7 GW in 2030.

Brussels set to launch action against Amynteo overtime use

Posted on by admin

The European Commission is set to launch a sanctions process against Greece in response to the country’s continued use of main power utility PPC’s lignite-fired Amynteo power station, whose 17,500-hour operating time limit, imposed for environmental reasons, expired approximately three weeks ago, on November 19.

The news of the imminent Brussels action was disclosed by a highly-ranked Directorate-General for Environment official in Athens last Friday, who added the specific department, responsible for EU policy on the environment, has not received any Greek extension request.

European Commission sanction procedures for such issues are typically lengthy and could take anywhere between a year or two to complete from the time Brussels forwards its initial complaint, the two sides exchange ensuing letters, Athens raises an anticipated objection, and Brussels issues a ruling, an official who is well-informed on the process told energypress.

Athens will aim to utilize this period and push ahead with a plan to complete an Amynteo power station upgrade that would enable the revamped unit to keep operating. The development of Ptolemaida V, a modern facility, may also be completed by then.

The Amynteo upgrade is not expected to begin until a bailout-required sale of three power stations at Megalopoli and Meliti has been completed.

The Mytilineos group, Gek Terna, Copelouzos, joined by China’s Shenhua, as well as Intrakat, have all expressed interest for involvement in the Amynteo upgrade.

 

 

Qatar team in Crete to survey units for sufficiency proposal

Posted on by admin

A team of Qatar state-run energy company officials has arrived in Crete to survey the main power utility PPC’s diesel-fueled power station in the Atherinolakos region as part of the firm’s interest to offer a solution for Crete’s looming energy sufficiency threat as of 2020, when PPC will need to have withdrawn its diesel-fired power stations operating on the island.

The survey to be conducted by Qatari energy company technical officials will also include the Atherinolakos port facilities, intended to be utilized as a key part of the plan. The firm’s proposal entails the usage of a floating power station and electricity supply unit to be anchored at the Atherinolakos port for additional electricity generation on Crete. The vessel will include an LNG storage facility as well as a gasification unit, according to the Qatar firm’s plan.

At this crucial stage, given the little time remaining before the withdrawal of PPC’s old diesel-fired power stations on Crete, it still remains unclear how the government and RAE, the Regulatory Authority for Energy, will go about resolving the island’s energy sufficiency threat from 2020 onward.

As his most preferred choice, energy minister Giorgos Stathakis hopes the European Commission will offer a further operating extension for Crete’s existing power stations. If Brussels does not, then the old units will need to stop operating by December 31, 2019.

GEK Terna, Socar and Spain’s Enagas have also made proposals along the lines of the plan proposed by Qatar’s energy firm.

PPC currently operates three diesel-fueled power stations on Crete with a total capacity of 728 MW. Total electricity demand on the island is estimated at 630 MW.

A planned submarine cable link from Crete to the Peloponnese will provide a further 150 to 180 MW to the island, while a major-scale grid interconnection, to link Crete with Athens, will offer around 700 MW.

These interconnection projects have been delayed as a result of an ongoing dispute between Greek power grid operator IPTO and Euroasia Interconnector – a consortium of Cypriot interests heading a wider Greek-Cypriot-Israeli PCI-status interconnection project – for control of the Crete-Athens segment.

 

 

 

Brussels grants investors one-month extension for PPC bids

Posted on by admin

Investors have been given a one-month extension for second-round binding bids concerning the main power utility PPC’s sale of lignite units following the European Commission’s approval of a request made by China’s CHN Energy, which has joined forces with the Copelouzos group for this sale.

Subsequently, prospective buyers now face a November 17 deadline for their binding bids. The deadline extension had been widely anticipated over the past ten days or so following hints made by energy ministry officials at the recent Thessaloniki International Trade Fair.

The additional time provides energy ministry and PPC officials with an opportunity to negotiate with Brussels for the possible inclusion in the sale of a CAT remuneration system for lignite-fired electricity generation.

CHN Energy and the Copelouzos group had requested up to two months of additional time but the deadline extension was limited to one month by a  Monitoring Trustee overlooking the overall sale procedure on behalf of the European Commission.

Both the energy ministry and PPC officials fear offers by investors could remain low, higher CO2 emission right costs being a key factor. CAT remuneration would offer some incentive for bigger bids.

Initial hopes of a total sale price of around one billion euros for PPC lignite units and mines representing 40 percent of the utility’s overall lignite capacity have now deescalated to levels of several hundred million euros. Some investors have suggested offers could be considerably lower.

GEK-Terna, which has united with the Czech Republic’s Seven Energy for the PPC sale; another Czech firm, EPH; ElvalHalcor, a member of the Viohalko group; as well as Mytilineos, are the sale’s other second-round qualifiers.

CHN Energy requests deadline extension for PPC unit sale bids

Posted on by admin

China’s CHN Energy, which has joined forces with the Copelouzos group for the main power utility PPC’s bailout-required sale of lignite units – offered as two respective packages representing 40 percent of the utility’s overall lignite capacity in the north and south – has requested a deadline extension of one or two months for the submission of binding offers. The current deadline expires on October 17.

CHN Energy is seeking additional time for its analysis of data collected by company officials, including through the PPC sale’s virtual data room, energypress sources informed. CHN Energy officials have forwarded numerous questions concerning the units up for sale, the sources added. Company practices, including approval procedures, applied at CHN Energy are a contributing factor to the need for additional time, sources said.

The CHN Energy request is now being examined by the European Commission, supervising the PPC sale.

Other participants do not appear to have requested more time. GEK-Terna, which has united with Seven Energy for the PPC sale, Czech firm EPH, ElvalHalcor, a member of the Viohalko group, as well as Mytilineos, have all submitted first-round expressions of interest.

The prospect of other partnerships being formed by these players does not seem probable, sources noted.

PPC officials will begin a series of management interviews today with participants for clarification of financial data collected through the video data room during the summer. Despite union resistance, some candidates managed to make on-site inspections of PPC facilities included in the sale.

 

 

PPC lignite sale regaining pace, 4 of 5 candidates interested

Posted on by admin

Four of five investment teams that submitted first-round expressions of interest for the main power utility PPC’s sale of bailout-required sale of lignite mines and power stations appear to have sustained their interested now that the disinvestment procedure is regaining speed following the summer slowdown in August.

Investors have actively sought sale-related information in the virtual data room established for the disinvestment ahead of a series of separate interviews, planned to begin next week, with PPC officials for further clarification of the assets up for sale, including technical and financial details. Interested parties are expected to submit binding second-round offers in October.

Czech firm EPH (Energeticky a Prumyslovy Holding) appears to have retreated and will most likely not take part in the upcoming series of meetings. Until now, EPH representatives have yet to request any meeting with PPC officials.

On the contrary, Seven Energy, another Czech firm that emerged in the first round, has stationed a representative in Athens, seems very interested, and has joined forces with local powerhouse GEK Terna.

Investors still need to gain further information as the two companies founded to offer two separate sale packages, respectively representing PPC lignite units in Greece’s north and south, did not exist prior to this sale’s launch. As a result, prospective buyers need to be particularly careful and seek further details on corporate, legal and sale matters.

PPC’s chief executve Manolis Panagiotakis is not expected to participate in the power utility’s series of forthcoming meetings with investors.

Despite certain reservations as a result of lignite’s indefinite future in Greece’s energy mix, all other four investment teams appear interested in PPC’s two sale packages, representing 40 percent of the power utility’s overall lignite capacity.

Besides the GEK Terna-Seven Energy partnership, the Copelouzos group has been joined by China Energy (Beijing Guohua Power), while the Mytilineos group and ElvalHalcor also emerged in the first round.

All first-round PPC units sale participants to make next stage

Posted on by admin

All first-round participants of the main power utility PPC’s bailout-required sale of  lignite mines and power stations representing 40 percent of the utility’s overall lignite capacity meet the procedure’s criteria to qualify for the next stage, PPC officials have unofficially made known.

A total of six bidding schemes submitted non-binding expressions of interest for the sale’s first round, expected to end today with the announcement of qualifiers.

As of Monday, the sale’s second-round qualifiers will gain access to the procedure’s data room for two months – once they have signed confidentiality agreements – to evaluate technical and financial information concerning the power stations and mines up for sale.

A consortium comprising Beijing Guohua, a subsidiary of China’s Shenhua, and Damco Energy, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Copelouzos group; GEK-Terna; ElvalHalcor, a member of the Viohalko group; Czech firm EPH (ENERGETICKÝ Α PRŮMYSLOVÝ HOLDING); Indoverse Coal Investments Limited, also Czech; as well as Mytilineos, all submitted first-round expressions of interest.

The wide turnout could lead to aggressive bidding in the next round, when investors will be expected to produce binding offers. However, not all pundits are convinced turnout alone will be enough to generate elevated bids for a lofty sale price.

PPC’s administration has stressed solid incentives are needed for the prospective investors, including CAT payment assurances for the units included in the disinvestment’s packages, one covering the country’s north and the other the south.

Second-round terms are expected to be announced to the qualifying schemes next week. PPC and the utility’s advisers have pushed the sale’s authorities for the most favorable terms possible in an effort to increase the sale’s appeal for investors.

PPC wants terms that will enable, even encourage, participants to join forces. Mobility is being reported among the first-round bidders, including the Czech bidders, believed to be maneuvering for possible partnerships.

The second-round terms are also expected to clarify whether participants will be permitted to submit a joint offer for the sale’s northern and southern packages. Sources said such a provision will be included in the second-round terms, based on a formula applied for the privatization of regional airports around Greece.

The PPC disinvestment’s Greek-Chinese bidding team of Beijing Guohua and Damco Energy, which yesterday signed a partnership agreement for this sale yesterday, made clear it is interested in both the northern and southern packages.

CAT eligibility vital for prospects of PPC units sale, chief notes

Posted on by admin

The level of investor interest, asset value and achievable sale price of a bailout-required sale of main power utility PPC lignite mines and power stations will depend on whether the units being offered will be eligible for CAT remuneration, the power utility’s CEO, Manolis Panagiotakis, has told journalists.

Strong political support by the government, perhaps from its top level, will be needed as European Commission directives issued so far exclude lignite units from CAT mechanism payments, the PPC boss noted.

Conventional power stations, such as lignite-fired units, must satisfy a CO2 emission limit of 550 grams per KWh to qualify for CAT mechanism payments.

A European Commission proposal calling for even stricter limits is gaining growing support throughout Europe.

Given the developments, the PPC lignite units placed for sale will most likely remain ineligible for CAT support. If so, this will severely limit their appeal for investors in general. They would need to be taken on by industrial enterprises active in sectors eligible for mechanisms offsetting a considerable percentage of CO2 emission right costs.

Meanwhile, taking the sale process a step further, PPC shareholders yesterday approved a split from the corporation of the two lignite unit packages being offered in the sale of lignite mines and power stations, representing 40 percent of the utility’s overall lignite capacity.

Yesterday’s approval now enables PPC to open a data room through which six candidate investors will be informed on the details of assets included in the disinvestment.

“Our work begins now – to correctly inform interested parties, make appropriate presentations and highlight the details that make the units attractive investment prospects – in order to to achieve a satisfactory sale price,” PPC’s chief executive, Manolis Panagiotakis, informed journalists. “Now is also the time for the government and the European Commission to show, with action, their support for lignite-related production,” he added.

Three major local players, GEK-Terna, Mytilineos and ElvalHalcor, a member of the Viohalko group, as well as a fourth, the Copelouzos group, joined by Beijing Guohua, a wholly owned subsidiary of China’s Shenhua, submitted first-round expressions of interest for the PPC lignite units. Two Czech firms, EPH (ENERGETICKÝ Α PRŮMYSLOVÝ HOLDING) and Indoverse Coal Investments Limited, also emerged as surprise participants.

 

 

 

Two Czech firms emerge as PPC unit sale’s surprise contenders

Posted on by admin

The emergence of two Czech firms, EPH (ENERGETICKÝ Α PRŮMYSLOVÝ HOLDING) and Indoverse Coal Investments Limited, for expressions of interest in the first round of the main power utility PPC’s bailout-required sale of lignite mines and power stations, is the procedure’s surprise development so far.

Expressions of interest by three major local players, GEK-Terna, Mytilineos and ElvalHalcor, a member of the Viohalko group, joined by Beijing Guohua, a wholly owned subsidiary of China’s Shenhua, had been widely anticipated.

EPH is the most recent buyer of lignite units in Europe. The Czech firm acquired facilities with a total capacity of 8,000 MW in 2016. Located in Germany’s east, these lignite units were sold by Sweden’s Vattenfall. Roughly half were built in the 1980s and the other half about two decades ago.

Vattenfall, a state-owned firm, is believed to have sold these units to EPH in order to reduce its portfolio’s exposure to CO2 polluting lignite.

The corporate size of EPH is comparable to that of PPC. Its assets are valued at 12.8 billion euros and annual total turnover reaches about 6 billion euros. However, the Czech firm’s profit figures are a lot more robust. The company’s most recent EBITDA figure was reported at 1.9 billion euros.

EPH maintains assets in central Europe – Czech Republic, Slovakia, Germany, Hungary and Poland – as well as in Italy and the UK.

The EPH group was established in 2009 with the PPF group, which has invested in Greece’s OPAP state lottery, among its founding shareholders. Through subsidiaries, EPH controls and operates lignite-fired power stations, mines, telethermal systems, natural gas networks and storage facilities. It also operates as a coal trader and supplier of electricity and natural gas and owns a number of renewable energy units.

The main shareholder at EPH, 42-year-old Daniel Kretinsky, sold 31 percent of EPH Infrastructure to Australia’s Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets in 2016. Kretinsky also holds stakes in Czech media and is a co-owner of the Sparta Prague soccer club.

Indoverse, the other Czech firm to emerge for the first round of PPC’s sale, is active in the Czech Republic’s coal market and operates one power station and mines. Early this year, the company’s head, energy-sector investor Pavel Tykac, who is ranked one of his country’s five wealthiest individuals, declared an intention to invest over one billion euros in European coal-fired power stations.

Tykac has been involved in a number of contentious issues and has needed to face legal charges prompted by unorthodox business practices, including aggressive takeover attempts.

He is the sole owner of Sev.en Energy Group, Indoverse’s parent company. The Sev.en energy group is far smaller than Greece’s PPC. It produces approximately 10 million tons of lignite each year and operates a 410-MW lignite-fired power station.

PPC sale draws expected local players, Shenhua, Czech firms

Posted on by admin

Three major local players, GEK-Terna, Mytilineos and ElvalHalcor, a member of the Viohalko group, as well as a fourth, the Copelouzos group, joined by Beijing Guohua, a wholly owned subsidiary of China’s Shenhua, have – as was anticipated – all submitted first-round expressions of interest for the main power utility PPC’s sale of bailout-required sale of lignite mines and power stations. Two Czech firms, EPH (ENERGETICKÝ Α PRŮMYSLOVÝ HOLDING) and Indoverse Coal Investments Limited, also emerged as surprise participants. The deadline for expressions of interest expired yesterday afternoon.

PPC needs to disinvest power stations and mines units representing 40 percent of the utility’s overall lignite capacity.

The list of first-round bidders could be revised if partnerships are established or entrants fail to meet criteria enabling qualification for binding bids in the second round. The PPC board will decide on the qualifiers.

Finalized investment schemes will need to be officially declared by the end of July. A September deadline is expected to be set for binding bids.

It is not yet known if any of the sale’s early participants intend to submit binding second-round bids. They are expected to decide after examining PPC’s financial, technical and legal information to be made available to first-round participants through a data room. Investors are not expected to decide any sooner than next month.

The sale price to be demanded by PPC will be a crucial factor for investors. Though definitely interested in acquiring lignite-fired power stations and mines as a means of  controlling their cost of electricity sold, participating suppliers are troubled by the rising production cost of solid fuel-based power generation, a development prompted by EU climate change policies.

PPC advisers upbeat on wider turnout for lignite units sale

Posted on by admin

The main power utility PPC’s advisers steering the utility’s bailout-required sale of lignite mines and power stations representing 40 percent of the utility’s overall lignite capacity, are confident that, besides local players, a considerable number of foreign investors will also emerge to submit first-round expressions of interest. The deadline for participants expires today.

Over the past few days, it has been rumored that the sale could attract investors from India. This remains to be seen, later today. For the time being, a number of local players, namely GEK-Terna, Mytilineos and Viohalco, as well as the Copelouzos group, expected to join forces with China’s Shenhua for this sale, are believed to be the only certainties.

It is not yet known if any of these probable participants will submit binding second-round bids. They are expected to decide after examining PPC’s financial, technical and legal information to be made available to first-round participants through a data room. These details will help participants determine whether the purchase of lignite units represents a sustainable investment or not. Investors are not expected to decide any sooner than next month.

The sale price to be demanded by PPC will be a crucial factor for investors. Though definitely interested in acquiring lignite-fired power stations and mines as a means of  controlling their cost of electricity sold, participating independent suppliers are troubled by the rising production cost of solid fuel-based power generation, a development prompted by EU climate change policies.

According to European Commission studies and forecasts, emission right costs in the EU, already elevated, are expected to climb further, from 14.43 euros per ton, yesterday’s price, to over 30 euros per ton in 2030.

Given these conditions, investor interest in PPC’s disinvestment of lignite units is expected to be limited to industrial enterprises eligible for offsetting mechanisms compensating such expenses.

 

 

PPC lignite unit bidders to move alone for sale’s initial stage

Posted on by admin

Most of the local corporate groups planning to submit first-round expressions of interest for the main power utility PPC’s bailout-required sale of lignite mines and power stations representing 40 percent of the utility’s overall lignite capacity are expected to move independently before forming consortiums for the second round, if the acquisition of units offered is deemed sustainable.

All investors, expect for the Copelouzos group, which has made clear it intends to join forces with China’s Shenhua from the start, are expected to bid alone in the first round.

The deadline for first-round expressions of interest expires this Thursday. At this stage, GEK-Terna, Mytilineos and Viohalco, along with the Copelouzos-Shenhua partenership, are expected to emerge as the first round’s local bidders.

No further partnerships involving Greek firms are expected at this preliminary stage of the sale process despite ongoing talks between various parties. Talks for the establishment of consortiums are seen maturing in July, once the short list of second-round qualifiers takes shape.

The sustainability prospects of units offered by the sale’s terms will be crucial in determining the bidding interest of second-round qualifiers.

According to sources, current talks between interested parties not only concern initial equity line-ups but long-term partnerships for power supply.

Given the increased CO2 emission right costs, investor interest in PPC’s disinvestment of lignite units is expected to be limited to industrial enterprises eligible for offsetting mechanisms compensating these expenses.

Two major Greek industrial groups, Viohalko and Mytilineos, are eligible for offsetting mechanisms.

 

PPC set to appoint boards of two firms selling lignite units

Posted on by admin

The main power utility PPC intends to appoint, within the next few days, the boards of two new companies to carry the utility’s lignite mines and power stations included in a bailout-required sale representing 40 percent of the corporation’s overall lignite capacity, CEO Manolis Panagiotakis has announced.

Procedures for the disinvestment are believed to be progressing on schedule. Investors have until June 21 to express first-round, non-binding interest for the units included in the sale.

A broad turnout is expected in the first round, but many local investors insist they will emerge for the sale’s preliminary stage on an exploratory basis.

The two new PPC firms will operate concurrently with the sale procedure, according to the power utility’s boss.

The increased cost of CO2 emission rights, consistently over 15 euros per MWh in recent times, is a concern for the sale as it adds to the risk faced by prospective investors.

“We could make a bid if we see that the units can operate even with a marginal profit margin,” the representative of one potential investor, still reserved about the prospects of the units up for sale, told energypress.

The Mytilineos group and GEK-Terna have both declared they will submit non-binding offers on June 21, but it remains unknown whether they will be willing to make follow-up offers. Elpedison has insisted it will not turn up for the first round. The Stasinopoulos group is expected to participate, either independently or as part of a consortium. The first-round participation of a consortium comprised of the Copelouzos group and China’s Shenhua is also seen as a certainty.

According to the sale plan, binding offers will be submitted in September following the provision of data-room access to participants, offering details on the units to be sold.

 

 

 

 

 

GEK Terna: Industrial role crucial for PPC lignite units sale

Posted on by admin

The GEK Terna Group intends to take part in the first round of the main power utility PPC’s bailout-required sale of lignite units, like all other major corporate groups active in Greece’s energy market, but its participation in the second round of the disinvestment procedure, when binding offers will be submitted, will depend on a series of factors, the most important of these being whether investing in the lignite sector makes business sense, given the terms to be offered, board members made clear at a company shareholders’ meeting held yesterday.

Terna plans to take part in the PPC sale, offering investors power stations and mines representing 40 percent of the utility’s overall lignite capacity, through the parent company, not Terna Energy, board members informed in response to shareholder questions.

GEK Terna Group’s CEO Giorgos Peristeris (photo), in sideline discussions, pointed out that participation in the sale appears feasible only if industry is involved. More specifically, investment teams vying for the units would need to include companies eligible for energy-cost offsetting mechanisms, or buyers would need to establish long-term energy sale agreements with major-scale industrial consumers.

Energy-cost offsetting mechanisms are crucial as rising CO2 emission right costs are changing the wider market conditions, GEK Terna Group officials noted.

The number of employees to be attached to each PPC lignite unit sold is another vital factor as this will shape operating costs and the sustainability of respective units, group officials stressed.

The acquisition of all three of the sale’s lignite-fired power stations on offer by just one buyer represents a major risk as the resulting exposure to coal would come at a time when market changes, on a European scale, do not encourage such moves, GEK Terna Group officials noted.

For the time being, the GEK Terna Group, a leading player in Greece’s renewable energy market, plans to continue placing emphasis on the RES sector, and will also seek a greater role in foreign markets, through Terna Energy, company officials said. The company plans to further increase its investments in the US market and reduce exposure to the Greek market and the risks entailed.

 

Brussels rejects Amynteo time extension, upgrade now urgent

Posted on by admin

The European Commission appears to have rejected a Greek request for an operating hours extension of the main power utility PPC’s Amynteo lignite-fired power station, making the need to environmentally upgrade the facility extremely urgent.

Both the power utility and energy ministry are believed to have already accepted this position, according to energypress sources.

The Directorate-General for the Environment, in particular, has opposed a second request  made by Greek authorities, following an unsuccessful initial effort, calling for an extension of the ageing Amynteo facility’s remaining lifespan from 19,500 operating hours to 32,000.

A more positive stance on the prospect by the Directorate-General for Energy had raised the hopes of Greek officials, but it now appears the environmental authority’s position on the matter has prevailed.

This development means that PPC will need to act fast until the end of 2018 for a financing solution and assignment of the unit’s environmental upgrade so that the power plant can continue operating and, furthermore, ensure that the provincial city of Amynteo, in the country’s north, is not left without a telethermal facility as of 2019. Telethermal technology would cover the heating needs of Amynteo’s 10,000 or so inhabitants at an exceptionally low cost.

The Mytilineos group, GEK-TERNA, and the Copelouzos group, backed by China’s Shenhua, have all submitted upgrade proposals for the Amynteo facility.

As was disclosed yesterday by energypress, the energy ministry’s upgrade decision will be based on a series of critertia, key factors being the project’s assured financing as well as  assurance of low-cost electricity for major energy-intensive industries as a means of boosting their level of competitveness.

The Mytilineos corporate group’s Amynteo upgrade proposal, forwarded just days ago by chief executive Evangelos Mytilineos, entails a 110 million-euro revamp and lifespan extension to 2030 in exchange for a favorable long-term electricity supply agreement concerning the group’s Aluminium of Greece industrial enterprise. This proposal called for electricity absorption of between 300 and 400 MW per year, from the unit’s total capacity of 600 MW. Mytilineos left open the possibility of other industrial enterprises also taking part in the agreement. The Viohalco industrial group is believed to be interested in such a project, but the prospect remains unconfirmed.

GEK-TERNA had forwarded its environmental upgrade proposal to the energy ministry in October in exchange for favorable electricity tariffs.

The Copelouzos group and China’s Shenhua have proposed upgrading the lignite-fired facility in exchange for a stake of the facility.

 

 

 

Lower-cost industrial electricity a ‘key factor’ in Amynteo plan

Posted on by admin

Officials at the energy ministry see an environmental upgrade of the main power utility PPC’s ageing Amyneo lignite-fired power plant as an opportunity that would offer energy-intensive industry lower-cost electricity in the long run.

The Mytilineos group and GEK-TERNA have both proposed to upgrade the Amynteo facility in exchange for favorable electricity tariffs over an extended period, while the Copelouzos group and China’s Shenhua have joined forces to propose upgrading the lignite-fired facility in exchange for a stake of the facility.

Energy ministry officials are already making clear that the main criterion to be applied in the appraisal of these proposals will be the extent to which they assure lower-cost electricity for industries as a means of boosting their level of competitveness and complying with EU and Greek competition terms. At present, industrial enterprises are offered special tariffs by PPC on an individual basis.

Similar deals entailing upgrades for lower-cost energy have been reached in France.

PPC is currently preparing to move ahead with a bailout-required sale package of lignite units. Amynteo was excluded from the sale list by European authorities but the upgrade proposals offer potential to extend the old facility’s lifespan, currently running out of time.

The future course of the Amynteo lignite-fired power plant will depend on government decisions concerning the country’s energy strategy, PPC officials told energypress earlier this week. Lignite’s share of the country’s energy mix would need to remain considerable for the Amynteo upgrade to make sense, officials explained. It is believed that a lignite presence in the energy mix of close to the 19 TWh reached last year would justify an Amynteo upgrade. Lower levels of around 16 TWh would make Amynteo redundant, the sources added.

Just days ago, the Mytilineos corporate group’s chief executive Evangelos Mytilineos made a 110 million-euro offer to upgrade PPC’s ageing Amynteo plant and extend its lifespan to 2030 in exchange for a favorable long-term electricity supply agreement concerning the group’s Aluminium of Greece industrial enterprise. The proposal called for electricity absorption of between 300 and 400 MW per year, from the unit’s total capacity of 600 MW. Mytilineos left open the possibility of other industrial enterprises also taking part in the agreement. The Viohalco industrial group is believed to be interested in such a project, but the prospect remains unconfirmed.

GEK-TERNA had forwarded its environmental upgrade proposal to the energy ministry in October in exchange for favorable electricity tariffs.

 

PPC waiting for gov’t decision on Amynteo unit for direction

Posted on by admin

 

The future course of the main power utility PPC’s Amynteo lignite-fired power plant will depend on government decisions concerning the country’s energy strategy, utility officials told energypress when questioned about the utility’s intentions following three upgrade investment proposals made for Amynteo by GEK-TERNA, Mytilineos and Copelouzos-Shenhua.

PPC’s chief executive Manolis Panagiotakis is definitely interested in attracting an investor to take on the environmental upgrade of the ageing Amynteo facility, which would spare the utility of needing to provide capital of its own for the project, as long as lignite’s share of the country’s energy mix remains considerable, the sources noted. It is believed that a lignite presence close to the 19 TWh reached last year would justify an Amynteo upgrade.

If the annual share of lignite in the energy mix is limited to no more than 16 TWh then certain lignite-fired power stations will be redundant. Amynteo would certainly be sidelined in such a case. Newer plants and units included in a bailout required sale package of PPC lignite units, from which the Amynteo facility was dropped, would carry on operating.

PPC is waiting for energy ministry decisions on Amynteo around March, when they are expected to be revealed and forwarded to the European Commission, before deciding, the officials noted.