IEA report, positive, calls for faster RES licensing procedures

A latest International Energy Agency report on Greece, published today, calls for swifter licensing procedures concerning new RES projects, while also noting that any new investments in gas infrastructure will need to focus on fully meeting supply security requirements.

The report, examining Greece’s energy transition progress from 2017 to the present, commends the country’s green-energy performance but notes more work is needed.

Greece has made positive progress in reducing carbon use and reforming energy markets, but needs to do more to develop renewables and promote energy efficiency, IEA noted in an announcement concerning the report.

The IEA report praises Greece’s ambitious targets for a greener energy mix through installations of RES technologies, also planned to include offshore wind farms, and also commends initiatives taken to develop new power grid interconnections with neighboring countries.

These grid interconnections will, on the one hand, enable any excess green energy generation to be exported, while, on the other hand, diversify the country’s supply sources, it notes.

The report also makes extensive reference to initiatives taken by Greece to modernize its electricity and gas markets.

Key energy infrastructure included in new recovery fund

The government, intending to make the most of its favourable geographic location for diversified natural gas supply in the wider region, plans to seek EU funding support, through the REPowerEU package, for a series of natural gas and electricity grid projects awaiting development.

These projects are planned to be included in the country’s revised EU Recovery and Resilience Facility, to be submitted to by the government to the European Commission by early July.

The investments will aim to end Greece’s reliance on Russian energy sources by 2027, as planned by the REPowerEU package.

Besides the addition of natural gas infrastructure, absent from Greece’s existing recovery plan as a result of the European Commission’s unfavorable view on funding support for projects concerning natural gas, seen as a transitional energy source towards zero emissions, the country’s revised plan will also seek to incorporate electricity transmission projects that will contribute to the reinforcement of renewable energy sources in Europe’s energy mix.

The government is believed to have already prepared its catalogue of electricity and natural gas infrastructure project proposals to seek funding through the REPowerEU initiative.

An electricity grid interconnection project to link the Greek and Egyptian systems and transmit green energy, exclusively, to Greece and the EU has been included in the Greek catalogue, sources informed.

An additional central gas pipeline, to run 650 km from Komotini, northeastern Greece, to Elefsina’s Patima area, west of Athens, has also been included in the Greek catalogue, following a request by DESFA, the gas grid operator.

New gas project support to end, aid until 2029 for conversions

EU funding support for new natural gas and oil-related projects is expected to end soon, but will remain available over a transition period until December 31, 2029 for natural gas projects and gas transportation and storage infrastructure conversions catering to hydrogen, natural gas and biomethane needs before ultimately serving as hydrogen transportation and storage facilities, exclusively.

The council of EU energy ministers accepted Trans-European Energy Networks (TEN-E) regulation revisions incorporating these funding support changes at a meeting in Luxembourg.

The revisions, designed to help the EU achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, are planned to be implemented in 2022, if ratified.

The revisions also include measures designed to offer sustained protection for market competition and energy supply security.

The proposed revisions identify 11 priority energy corridors and three thematic priority areas for projects of common interest funded through the Connecting Europe Facility (2021-2027).