HEDNO

RAAEY proposal tackling ‘energy tourism’ in a month’s time

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RAAEY, the Regulatory Authority for Waste, Energy and Water, commissioned by the energy ministry to prepare a proposal for revisions to the electricity market’s supply code as a means of countering a surge in bad debt faced by electricity suppliers as a result of roving customers who are switching suppliers and escaping from unsettled electricity bills, will put forward its plan for a five-day consultation period, October 9 to 13, before finalizing its text and forwarding a completed version to the ministry by October 20.

This schedule was established at a RAAEY meeting yesterday with energy ministry officials and representatives of the country’s electricity suppliers.

RAAEY will use, as a template, a preceding plan it had prepared and delivered to the energy ministry in the spring of 2021, following three rounds of consultation.

At yesterday’s meeting, electricity supplier representatives raised objections to certain aspects of the existing plan and, it was agreed, will deliver proposed amendments by the beginning of next week. These concerns will be taken into consideration by RAAEY before it finalizes its proposal for the energy ministry.

Power utility PPC and independent suppliers are expected to forward their concerns through ESPEN, the Greek Energy Suppliers Association.

Revisions to the electricity market’s Article 42 of the supply code, which would stop strategic defaulters from fleeing to new electricity suppliers, will include a debt-flagging system, a key part of the previous proposals. This system will be managed by distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO.

Under current market rules, consumers with unpaid electricity bills remain free to switch suppliers. Resulting bad debt is estimated to have reached at least 300 million euros and may have even exceed 400 million euros.

Second round bids for smart meters tender due November

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Final-round qualifiers, four in total, in a tender being staged by Greek electricity distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO to offer a lucrative contract for the installation of approximately 7.5 million smart meters throughout the country have received all relevant information, including notification on their technical and financial offers, which will need to be submitted in the second week of November.

Greek company Protasis, partnering with France’s Sagemcom Energy & Telecom SAS; US corporation Itron’s Spanish subsidiary; fellow US firm Elster Rometrics’ Romanian subsidiary; and Slovenia’s Iskraemeco have qualified for the tender’s final round.

The four qualifiers have been provided all details concerning the technical requirements of the project, budgeted at 1.2 billion euros, up from an initial estimate of 800 million euros.

Meanwhile, the Council of State, Greece’s Supreme Administrative Court, has, according to sources, rejected a case filed by Swiss-headquartered group Landis+Gyr, challenging DEDDIE/HEDNO for its disqualification from the tender in the first round.

The court, sources informed, ruled that the distribution network operator was right to disqualify Landis+Gyr from the procedure as the company declared, as a sub-contractor, a production facility other than its Corinth plant, west of Athens, which serves as an international hub for Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

 

Delayed operator settlements troubling power suppliers

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Payment delays by distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO and power grid operator IPTO to electricity suppliers for finalized amounts regarding transactions between them, and which cannot be recovered through customer billing, are developing into a major concern that has sparked a response.

ESPEN, the Greek Energy Suppliers Association, intends to soon forward a letter of protest concerning these payment delays to RAAEY, the Regulatory Authority for Waste, Energy and Water, and the energy ministry.

Apart from the payment delays, charges suppliers end up needing to cover are significantly higher than amounts calculated by them based on preliminary figures.

ESPEN, in its letter, is also expected to highlight the need for an improvement of formulas applied by IPTO and DEDDIE/HEDNO, so that such discrepancies can be restricted.

Due to long periods that have elapsed, delayed finalized amounts anticipated by suppliers cannot be recovered through customers who have consumed corresponding amounts of energy and, in addition, may have switched suppliers in the process.

Ministry preparing to toughen up on electricity theft

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The energy ministry is preparing to take strict action in an effort to combat electricity theft, a rising concern now estimated to represent 5 percent of electricity market revenue. Some 13,000 power meter breaches were reported last year by DEDDIE/HEDNO, the distribution network operator.

Energy ministry officials held talks yesterday with representatives of RAAEY, the Regulatory Authority for Energy, Environment, and Water, DEDDIE/HEDNO and electricity suppliers to discuss an action plan.

Besides tougher rules resulting in stricter penalties for electricity theft, energy market authorities also aim to take further action on two fronts.

DEDDIE/HEDNO, it has been decided, will install smart meters at all shops, especially in sectors where a greater number of electricity-theft cases have been observed, such as hospitality.

Smart meters provide real-time data on electricity consumption, making it easier to detect any unusual or unauthorized usage patterns.

Officials have also agreed to take action at Roma camps, where electricity theft has been rampant, by converting overhead power line crossings into underground networks.

Framework to offer investors RES grid-injection cut support

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The energy ministry is preparing to form a working group that will be tasked with establishing a sustainable framework to support essential reductions in renewable energy source (RES) grid injections, for the prevention of grid overloads.

This working group will also shape incentives for ongoing RES projects, so that batteries may be integrated into these investments.

Energy ministry officials as well as representatives of all the country’s market operators – Regulatory Authority for Energy, Environment, and Water; power grid operator IPTO; distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO; RES market operator DAPEEP – are expected to participate in the working group.

In addition, market players will be invited to offer regular views on the work being carried out by the working group, to ensure that the investment community’s positions have also been taken into consideration.

The working group’s interventions are planned to mitigate the impact of RES grid-injection cuts on investors, and also to ensure that investments in new RES plants will possess the required predictability in terms of project cash inflow.

Operator prioritizing grid projects for RES penetration

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Distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO, driven by the necessity to accommodate for increased penetration of renewable energy sources, is currently engaged in a comprehensive evaluation process to identify the segments of the network that should be prioritized for reinforcement work.

As noted by the operator in its response to a related comment submitted during consultation of its development plan for 2022 to 2026, prioritization of grid reinforcement projects aimed at increasing RES penetration has been based on the level of activity at respective substations, technical feasibility of infrastructure reinforcement, and the possibility of connecting additional RES units to the grid, in cooperation with the System Operator.

The most mature reinforcement projects are being promoted for immediate implementation and financing through the Recovery Fund, the operator added.

DEDDIE urged to plan projects for island interconnections

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RAAEY, the Regulatory Authority for Energy, Environment, and Water, has urged distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO to prepare essential network development initiatives required to facilitate the progression of interconnections concerning Dodecanese island Astypalea, as well as islands situated in the Aegean Sea’s northwest and south.

The request accompanied RAAEY’s approval of the operator’s development program covering 2022 to 2026, which did not include these needed projects.

The authority has requested an update from DEDDIE/HEDNO on the necessary network development projects that have not been included in the operator’s network development plan but are related to the interconnections within a month of the approval’s publication in the government gazette.

The operator will need to incorporate these necessary network development projects into the next revision of its development plan.

RAAEY green light for network upgrade, five projects rejected

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RAEEY, the Regulatory Authority for Waste, Energy and Water, has approved distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO’s network development plan for 2022 to 2026, but, in doing so, has rejected some of the plan’s projects.

DEDDIE/HEDNO submitted a 2.2 billion-euro development plan comprising 139 projects, its objective being to develop “a modern network for all”.

RAAEY rejected five projects, budgeted at a total of 143.9 million euros, from the operator’s five-year development plan, including a 110 million-euro archive digitization project, as well as a 19.8 million-euro cyber security plan.

 

RAAEY to avoid clear-cut view on small PV RES auction issues

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RAAEY, the Regulatory Authority for Waste, Energy and Water, is not expected to deliver a clear-cut decision on whether the results of two RES auctions for small-scale PVs of up to 400 KW in the Peloponnese and Crete should be confirmed or annulled, but, instead, will offer a report detailing how these auctions proceeded and what kind of issues arose.

Decisions will then need to be taken at a political level as to whether the results of these RES auctions remain valid.

There have been indications of some issues concerning distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO’s online platform used for these auctions, but, overall, the platform, to which applications were submitted, ran smoothly, according to the authority.

For example, although bidders from abroad were not blocked from participating in these RES auctions, this does not appear to have affected the auctions as, in practice, no bids were lodged from outside Greece.

Also, evidence suggests that robotic software for automated bidding was used. However, any investors who may have employed such a method did not gain an advantage over rival bidders as very few applications appear to have been successfully submitted in such fashion.

It is also important to note that data concerning the platform’s operation for the two auctions is no longer available as it was deleted by the operator three months after the two RES auctions were staged, which makes it impossible to ascertain, with precision, how they fared.

 

Non-interconnected island gains for independent players

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A sizeable chunk of electricity users on the non-interconnected islands signed up with independent suppliers, primarily Elpedison, in the first half of 2023, a latest monthly report released by distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO has shown.

Power utility PPC’s market share on the non-interconnected islands contracted from 68.4 percent in January to 60.3 percent in June, mostly to the benefit of Elpedison, whose market share on these islands rose from 7.33 percent in January to 13.8 percent in June, the DEDDIE/HEDNO figures showed.

Fellow independent power suppliers Heron, Mytilineos, NRG, Volterra, Aerio Attikis and Zenith also achieved market share gains over the six-month period.

Heron’s market share rose to 7.73 percent from 6.96 percent; Mytilineos increased its share to 6.22 percent from 4.16 percent; Watt + Volt’s market share contracted to 3.78 percent from 4.9 percent; NRG increased its share to 3.54 percent from 2.71 percent; Aerio Attikis made a marginal gain to 1.7 percent from 1.68 percent, as did Zenith with a rise to 0.83 percent from 0.76 percent and Volterra, whose market share rose to 0.26 percent in June from 0.2 percent in January.

Further step taken for roof-mounted solar panel licenses

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Distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO has taken a further step towards completing a licensing framework for roof-mounted solar panels by enabling such systems that have qualified for subsidy support to engage in net-metering at a capacity of up to 10.8 kW.

DEDDIE/HEDNO has underlined that PV units need to be electrified before supporting documents for subsidies can be submitted.

Subsidy amounts may be lowered or even cancelled if, following initial approval, discrepancies are found during inspections of data and supporting documents.

Some 12,500 grid-capacity reservation applications have been submitted by PV investors for small-scale systems with generation capacities of up to 10 kW.

Of these 12,500 applications, 7,500 combine batteries and, as a result, have secured subsidies. The other 5,000 or so grid-capacity reservation applications, submitted for standard residential solar panels, have been lodged by private owners not interested in qualifying for subsidy support.

RAAEY reaches decisions on WACC levels for IPTO, HEDNO

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Following months of deliberation, RAAEY, the Regulatory Authority for Waste, Energy and Water, has reached decisions on WACC levels for power grid operator IPTO and distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO, setting the former’s at 7.51 percent, for 2023 to 2025, and the latter’s at 7.66 percent for 2023 and 2024, energypress sources have confirmed.

Based on these decisions, IPTO’s average WACC level for the four-year regulatory period, covering 2024 to 2027, works out to 7.16 percent, while the four-year regulatory period average for DEDDIE/HEDNO is 7.11 percent.

The discrepancy in WACC levels resulted from different borrowing-cost coefficients applied to a WACC formula used by RAEEY. All other factors that were taken into account, including country risk and cost of capital, were identical.

IPTO initially sought a higher WACC rate, pushing for its cause from as far back as last year, citing unfavorable changes in the economic environment, including inflation and interest rate increases.

Just recently, RAAEY set a WACC rate of 7.85 percent for gas grid operator DESFA, covering the entire four-year regulatory period (2024-2027), and an 8.57 percent WACC rate for DEPA Infrastructure, limited to 2023.

Unchanged public service surcharge, budget sum boost for special account

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Distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO has proposed keeping a public service compensation (YKO) surcharge unchanged but bolstering its special account with a cash injection of between 90 and 110 million euros from the state budget as a means of ensuring its sustainability in coming years.

The operator offered its proposal in response to a question on the matter by RAAEY, the Regulatory Authority for Waste, Energy and Water.

DEDDIE/HEDNO, in its response, forecast a 37 million-euro deficit for the country’s public service compensation special account at the end of 2023, followed by a surplus of more than 17 million euros at the end of 2024.

The operator recommended keeping the YKO surcharge – included in electricity bills – unchanged and bolstering its special account with an injection from the state budget based on forecasts for 2023 and 2024 as well as the need for a safety reserve of between 50 and 60 million euros.

RAAEY, which, according to energypress sources, appears to have agreed with the operator’s recommendation, is expected to approve and adopt the proposal at its plenary session on Thursday.

This approval would pave the way for RAAEY to proceed with a request to the government for an extraordinary grant to the YKO special account from the state budget.

The YKO special account, nowadays managed by DEDDIE/HEDNO, recorded a deficit of 5 million euros in April. It grew to approximately 25 million euros at the end of May.

 

New minister outlines sector issues ahead of policy speech

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The reelected conservative New Democracy party government’s newly appointed energy minister Theodoros Skylakakis has, in recent days, been preparing a list of energy market problems and pending matters, with emphasis on major issues, such as new tariffs, RES production cuts – needed during periods of low demand to avoid grid overloading – as well as development plans for offshore wind farms and hydrocarbon exploration, ahead of his parliamentary speech in Parliament tomorrow, when key policies by the new government will be outlined by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and his associates.

In the lead-up, Skylakakis has held meetings with top officials representing key market players such as RAAEY, the Regulatory Authority for Waste, Energy and Water; power utility PPC; power grid operator IPTO; distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO; gas grid operator DESFA; RES market operator DAPEEP; and EDEYEP, the Hellenic Hydrocarbons and Energy Resources Management Company, to discuss and take note of energy-sector problems and pending issues ahead of tomorrow’s speech in parliament.

The energy minister has also noted views expressed by RES sector officials on the new National Energy and Climate Plan. According to sources, Skylakakis’ predecessor, Pantelis Kapros – who served a short stint as energy minister in the caretaker government that held office between two rounds of voting, in May and June – has passed on a RES mix plan entailing a 60-40 share between wind and solar energy units, respectively.

Also, the new energy minister prefers to stick to a schedule that would terminate energy-crisis support measures at the end of September, rather than offer extensions, sources added.

 

RAAEY decides on WACC levels for DESFA, DEPA Infrastructure

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RAAEY, the Regulatory Authority for Waste, Energy and Water, has decided, after lengthy consideration, on WACC levels for two gas companies, DESFA, Greece’s gas grid operator, and DEPA Infrastructure.

The WACC level set for DESFA, 7.85 percent, will apply for a four-year period covering 2024 to 2027, while DEPA Infrastructure’s rate, 8.57 percent, applies for 2023.

The discrepancy between the two WACC levels resulted from different borrowing-cost coefficients applied to a WACC formula used by RAEEY. All other factors that were taken into account, including country risk and cost of capital, were identical.

DESFA is now expected to set tariffs ahead of tenders for three grid interconnection projects.

As for DEPA Infrastructure, the company’s new owner, Italgas, Europe’s second largest gas distributor, was expecting a WACC level of between 8 and 9 percent over the next four-year regulatory period in order to carry out its Greek investment plan through DEPA Infrastructure and its three gas distribution subsidiaries, EDA Attiki, EDA Thess and DEDA.

Decisions on WACC levels for power grid operator IPTO and distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO are expected by the end of July.

IPTO has requested a revised WACC level for the regulatory period covering 2022 to 2025, while DEDDIE/HEDNO is awaiting a revision for 2023 and 2024.

Capacity insufficiency plan for 11 non-interconnected islands

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Distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO has forwarded a plan to RAAEY, the Regulatory Authority for Waste, Energy and Water, detailing how capacity insufficiencies on 11 non-interconnected islands are intended to be covered this summer.

The operator attached its proposed solution to a wider development plan for the non-interconnected islands between 2023 and 2029.

DEDDIE/HEDNO’s plan includes proposals for Rhodes, Santorini, Samos, Lesvos, Chios, Karpathos, Limnos, Ikaria, Kythnos, and Kastellorizo (officially named Megisti), as well as the Kos-Kalymnos grid.

Emergency measures have been required in recent years as a result of prolonged heatwave conditions combined with increased tourism.

DEDDIE/HEDNO’s proposals include a wind-energy facility purchase or long-term rental plan to cover Rhodes’ capacity insufficiency of 17.51 MW.

In addition, long-term rental plans have been proposed by the operator for Santorini’s capacity insufficiency, estimated at 20 MW, Samos’s 12-MW insufficiency, Lesvos’ insufficiency of 14 MW, and Chios’ shortage of 24.5 MW.

IPTO formula for RES grid-injection cuts up for consultation

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Power grid operator IPTO has offered a description of its temporary RES grid input-curtailing formula it applies, whenever necessary, to ensure grid stability by preventing overloading during periods of lower electricity demand, for consultation on the matter staged by RAAEY, the Regulatory Authority for Waste, Energy and Water.

Based on the operator’s formula, RES output cuts are currently conducted across the board and proportionately. The operator issues orders for RES grid-injection cuts to individual units, groups of units, as well as to private medium-voltage networks through which green-energy plants are connected to medium and high-voltage substations.

The IPTO formula forwarded for consultation is essentially serving as a transitional framework until a permanent set of rules are established. They are expected to feature criteria prioritizing the order of RES units curtailing their grid injections.

IPTO, according to its formula, is also entitled to issue orders to distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO so that the latter may curtail grid injections at projects linked to the distribution network. The two operators have signed a Memorandum of Understanding concerning this matter.

The IPTO text forwarded for consultation also describes an inspection procedure for RES units as well as a penalty system for units not adhering to curtailment orders.

 

DEDDIE staging tender to upgrade 10 distribution system substations

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Distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO is staging a tender for projects to digitally upgrade and reinforce ten of the network’s substations. The projects are budgeted at 7.16 million euros, including VAT, while bidders face a July 11 deadline, following an extension that has been granted.

More specifically, the project concerns the upgrade of circuits and implementation of a digital communication network at ten 150kV/MT substations.

Project details to be taken on by the winning bidder will range from provision of new digital control and protection units, plus a variety of other equipment, for the upgrade of control and protection panels at power supply units, to system trial runs.

DEDDIE/HEDNO has increased its investments by three-and-a-half times over recent years to upgrade the distribution network and make it more resilient, the operator’s CEO Tasos Manos pointed out in a recent article published by energypress.

 

 

Public service compensation account in deficit territory

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The public service compensation (YKO) special account has been in deficit territory since April, latest data has shown, despite a previous official forecast projecting it would record a surplus of approximately 510 million euros in 2023.

The issue was raised by Dimtris Fourlaris, energy-division deputy at RAAEY, the Regulatory Authority for Waste, Energy and Water, in a letter to distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO.

In the letter, leaked yesterday, the authority’s deputy has requested an update from the operator that would include an extended forecast on the public service compensation special account’s figures for 2023 and 2024, as well as an estimate on what the contribution, into the special account, should be from the budget or consumers, through increased charges.

RAAEY will use DEDDIE/HEDNO’s updated information to prepare a proposal for the energy ministry concerning an adjustment of public service compensation surcharges included in electricity bills.

According to the RAAEY deputy, the public service compensation special account recorded a deficit of approximately 5 million euros at the end of April.

No changes to RES, energy storage grid injection limit plan

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The energy ministry has completed work on a ministerial decision designed to restrict injections into the grid by new RES and energy storage units and plans to sign it off within the next few days as the matter is one of the energy sector’s pending issues the ministry wants to have settled ahead of the May 21 legislative election.

According to sources, formulas proposed by power grid operator IPTO and distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO have been maintained for the ministerial decision.

The ministry’s decision to impose grid injection restrictions was taken in order to make optimal use of available electrical capacity in the transmission and distribution system and ultimately maximize the number of green-energy power plants.

According to the legislative revision, the energy injection restrictions will not be able to exceed 5 percent of the respective annual capacities of units subject to the limit.

The measure will apply to all RES plants under development and possessing finalized connection offers, as well as to green-energy projects for which connection requests have been submitted to either DEDDIE/HEDNO or IPTO. Batteries will also be subject to the injection restriction, regardless of whether they have been incorporated into RES systems or not.

Grid overcomes Easter’s grid overload scare with little action

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The country’s grid emerged untroubled by an overload scare concerning the Greek Easter long weekend, a situation prompted by the combination of high RES output, a lower-cost energy strategy planned by the grid operators, and low demand.

Overcast weather in most parts of the country restricted solar energy output, sparing power grid operator IPTO of the need to intervene in order to protect the grid from being overcharged amid low-demand conditions.

Had action been necessary, IPTO planned to orchestrate a highly complex combination of moves that would have included restricting electricity imports, deactivating as many power stations as possible and significantly cutting RES input.

As it turned out, Good Friday was the most challenging day for the grid, as cloudy weather on Easter Saturday and Easter Sunday proved pivotal in helping authorities overcome the overcharge threat.

IPTO, coordinating with distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO, only needed to make limited RES cuts.

RAE to approve compensation plan for outage-affected users

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RAE, the Regulatory Authority for Energy, is expected to finalize a proposal this week for the country’s first ever framework offering compensation to electricity users affected by lengthy power cuts as a result of extreme weather conditions.

According to sources, RAE officials could approve the authority’s proposal for a compensation package at a plenary session tomorrow, bringing the framework a step closer to being legislated.

As previously reported by energypress, distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO will be responsible for the compensation system.

Compensation amounts to be paid out to affected electricity users will be many times over their distribution network fee payments, but will not exceed 2,000 euros, sources have informed.

Also, compensation payments will be limited to lengthy power disruptions, defined as over 72 hours long, and to areas with up to one million power meters.

During consultation staged last December, DEDDIE/HEDNO officials noted the operator faces challenges to swiftly repair network faults as a result of a lack of automated systems that enable instant identification of grid spots experiencing issues.

RAE increases distribution usage fee, demand fall a factor

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A distribution network usage fee included in electricity bills is set for an increase to cost typical households an additional 76 euros or so per year, following a decision reached by RAE, the Regulatory Authority for Energy.

RAE took this decision based on two factors, firstly after opting to offer distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO a regulated revenue increase, its first in many years, which will lift the operator’s required revenue to 981 million euros in 2023 from 744 million euros last year.

The second factor behind the increase is the significant decrease in electricity demand compared to 2019 levels, a decline linked to the pandemic’s lockdown periods as well as the ensuing energy crisis. This decrease in electricity demand has forced RAE to increase the operator’s revenue per KWh.

Ordinary households, using up to 3,750 kWh of electricity per year, can now expect to face annual distribution network usage surcharges totaling 174 euros, up from 98 euros at present, according to calculations conducted by local energy market price-comparison website allazorevma.gr.

Compensation rules nearing for outage-affected electricity users

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Local authorities working on the country’s first ever framework offering compensation to electricity users affected by lengthy power cuts as a result of extreme weather conditions are edging closer towards finalizing their plan and forwarding it for approval.

RAE, the Regulatory Authority for Energy, the entity working on the compensation plan, is expected to finalize its proposal next week, sources have informed.

Distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO will be held accountable for damages to electricity users caused by lengthy power disruptions, defined as over 72 hours long, according to the rules being prepared.

However, the compensation package will be limited to areas with up to one million power meters. This restriction excludes Athens, whose population is estimated at 3.1 million, from the compensation package.

Compensation amounts will be many times over distribution network fees paid by electricity users but will not exceed 2,000 euros, the sources informed.

This set of rules was proposed by DEDDIE/HEDNO in consultation staged last December. During this procedure, the operator had pointed out that it faces challenges to swiftly repair network faults as a result of a lack of equipment for identifying points where supply has been cut.

The operator, during this consultation procedure, also made note of the country’s low percentage of underground power lines, just 11 percent of the 240,000-km total, exposing most of the grid to the threat of damages and outages during adverse weather conditions.

The need for a compensation package covering electricity users arose following network damages that impacted numerous households and businesses during extreme weather events in recent times.

 

Power supply cuts up modestly in 2022 despite energy crisis

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Power supply cuts executed by distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO in 2022 increased by roughly 6,000 compared to 2021, a subdued rise given the ongoing energy crisis and increased energy costs for households.

The operator commended consumers for their ability to adjust to the extreme market conditions.

The number of consumers shifting suppliers in 2022 rose only slightly, to 588,000 customers, up from 555,000 in 2021, despite expectations of greater mobilization in 2022.

However, unrestricted usage, by consumers, of the country’s universal electricity supply service, covering the electricity needs of black-listed consumers who have been shunned by suppliers over payment failures, is a problem for the market, Dimitris Vranis, Director of the Network Users Department at DEDDIE/HEDNO told last week’s Power & Gas Forum in Athens.

The universal service’s current framework, offering consumers usage over limitless periods, has been loss-incurring for suppliers.

Consumer reliance on the universal electricity supply service, up 12 percent this year alone, has grown considerably in recent years. It is provided collectively – by law – by the electricity market’s top five suppliers, based on market share.

 

Landis+Gyr Supreme Court action for smart meters exit

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Swiss-headquartered group Landis+Gyr has scheduled a news conference for today to inform of the reasons behind its decision to legally challenge, at the Council of State, Greece’s Supreme Administrative Court, its disqualification from the final round of a tender staged by Greek electricity distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO for a lucrative one billion-euro contract concerning the installation of approximately 7.5 million smart meters throughout the country.

At today’s session, Landis+Gyr also plans to offer an update on the next steps it intends to take concerning the smart-meters tender and also inform on its overall strategy for the Greek market.

Landis+Gyr’s chief executive officer Werner Lieberherr and the head official of the group’s Greek subsidiary, Aristidis Pappas, have already suggested a Supreme Court setback for the Swiss group would jeopardize a multi-million-euro investment plan at its production plant in Corinth, west of Athens.

Landis+Gyr was disqualified from the tender by DEDDIE/HEDNO as it declared, as a sub-contractor, a production facility other than its Corinth plant, serving as an international hub for Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Landis+Gyr took its case to the Council of State after a preliminary appeal was rejected by the Hellenic Single Public Procurement Authority.

Greek company Protasis, partnering with France’s Sagemcom Energy & Telecom SAS; US corporation Itron’s Spanish subsidiary; fellow US firm Elster Rometrics’ Romanian subsidiary; and Slovenia’s Iskraemeco have qualified for the tender’s final round.

Over the past decade or so, DEDDIE/HEDNO and parent company PPC, the power utility, have announced a series of tenders for the procurement and installation of smart meters, ultimately to no avail. They have either not taken place or not been completed.

HEDNO decides on voluntary exit plan with €20,000 bonus sum attached

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Distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO’s board has decided to offer employees aged 60 and above a voluntary exit package this year that includes bonus compensation pay of 20,000 euros.

This bonus sum will be offered to exiting staff members as long as certain prerequisites are met, in addition to a maximum amount of 15,000 euros required by law.

DEDDIE/HEDNO staff eligible for the bonus compensation amount will need to be aged 61 or over and have acquired pension rights; turn 60 years of age within 2023 and have acquired pension rights; or be aged 67 and backed by at least 15 years of employment at either DEDDIE/HEDNO or its parent company, power utility PPC.

Employees belonging to the first of these three categories will receive a bonus compensation amount of 20,000 euros if they voluntarily resign by July 31, 2023. As for the second and third categories, workers will receive the bonus compensation amount if they exit the company by December 31, 2023.

DEDDIE/HEDNO plans to soon begin procedures to recruit 1,400 new employees by June, the company’s chief executive, Anastasios Manos, has informed.

The employee renewal program is needed as the operator has undertaken network development projects for the coming years to support the country’s RES objectives, Manos has explained.

Just one staff renewal program has been carried out by DEDDIE/HEDNO between 2012 and 2019, which has resulted in 158 hirings but remains unfinished, the chief executive said.

Smart meters tender headed towards unchartered territory

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Swiss-headquartered group Landis+Gyr’s announcement highlighting it will pursue all available legal options in an effort to overturn its disqualification from the final round of a tender staged by Greek electricity distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO for a lucrative contract concerning the installation of approximately 7.5 million smart meters throughout the country, to replace the existing analog meters, appears to be directing the competitive procedure towards unchartered territory.

Over the past decade or so, DEDDIE/HEDNO and parent company PPC, the power utility, have announced a series of tenders for the procurement and installation of smart meters, ultimately to no avail. They have either not taken place or not been completed.

The Swiss-headquartered corporation was disqualified from the latest tender by the Greek operator as it had declared, as a sub-contractor, a production facility other than one it maintains in Corinth, west of Athens, which serves as an international hub for Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Normally, a recent decision by the Hellenic Single Public Procurement Authority rejecting the Swiss group’s case would give DEDDIE/HEDNO the green light to move ahead with the next round of the tender.

This would entail forwarding technical specifications of the required new power meters as well as the IMR MDM (Meter Data Management System) to the procedure’s four qualifiers, Greek company Protasis, partnering with France’s Sagemcom Energy & Telecom SAS; US corporation Itron’s Spanish subsidiary; fellow US firm Elster Rometrics’ Romanian subsidiary; and Slovenia’s Iskraemeco.

Landis+Gyr is expected to decide on the next step of its legal recourse once it has received the full details, in writing, of its case’s rejection by the Hellenic Single Public Procurement Authority, expected to be delivered between mid and late March.

PPC maintains its low-voltage customer base in 2022

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Power utility PPC managed, more or less, to maintain its low-voltage customer base in 2022, whereas private-sector electricity suppliers made limited gains, fourth-quarter data on Greece’s retail electricity market published by distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO has shown.

PPC ended 2022 with approximately 4.96 million customers in the low-voltage category, just 53,000 less than its number of customers at the end of 2021, the operator’s data showed.

Private-sector electricity suppliers ended 2022 with just under 1.69 million customers in the low-voltage category, increasing their overall portfolio by only 31,000 compared to the end of 2021, according to the DEDDIE/HEDNO data.

In 2021, PPC lost a far greater number of low-voltage customers, an exodus numbering 255,000, while private-sector suppliers had gained approximately 305,000 customers, nearly ten times more than their marginal gain in 2022.

Ministry putting final touches to solar panel subsidies offer

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The energy ministry is finalizing the details of a subsidy program for roof-mounted solar panels to be made available to a total of 300,000 applicants – households, farmers, and businesses.

Pre-notification of the support program’s guidelines is expected to be released next week, barring unforeseen developments, so that interested parties may begin preparing their applications, energypress sources informed.

In addition, distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO has just about completed a platform simplifying net metering application procedures, so that interested parties may submit applications prior to the launch of the subsidy program for roof-mounted solar panels.

The subsidy program will need to be approved in Parliament as part of a draft bill also including other RES sector matters.

Speaking at an industry event yesterday, energy minister Kostas Skrekas noted that a 40 percent share of the subsidy program’s funds would be allocated for households, while farmers and businesses would each share 30 percent. This share of the funds means roughly 120,000 households, 90,000 farmers and 90,000 businesses will be eligible.

The ministry has increased the subsidy program’s total number of eligible parties to 300,000 from 250,000 as it opted to lower the program’s capacity limit for household roof-mounted solar systems to 7 KW from 10 KW, energypress sources informed.