PCI

RAE adamant on its Crete link plan despite Brussels objection

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RAE, the Regulatory Authority for Energy, appears adamant about its recent decision to appoint Greek power grid operator IPTO as project promoter of the Crete-Athens grid interconnection despite objections from the European Commission, insisting Euroasia Interconnector, a consortium of Cypriot interests heading a wider Greek-Cypriot-Israeli PCI-status interconnection project, remains in charge of the Crete-Athens segment.

Latest developments in the dispute indicate RAE will push ahead with details concerning its decision to place IPTO at the helm of the Crete-Athens link within the next fortnight. These details include the provision of an environmental license to IPTO and the assembly of a technical team to work on the Crete-Athens link’s compatibility with the wider project.

In comments to energypress, RAE officials said the authority will push ahead as planned, contending its actions to date comply with EU laws and regulations. The Greek energy authority took action following a report delivered by ACER, Europe’s Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators, which confirmed the PCI-status project was two years behind schedule, the RAE sources added.

The concerns of Greek officials are focused on a looming energy sufficiency threat on Crete as of 2020, when high-polluting diesel-fueled power stations operating on the island will need to be withdrawn.

It remains unclear if the dispute will bring together Greece’s energy minister Giorgos Stathakis and European Commissioner for Climate Action and Energy Miguel Arias Canete for higher-level talks on the matter.

 

New Athens-Brussels standoff in Crete-Athens link talks

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Two teams of Greek energy ministry and European Commission Directorate-General for Energy technocrats have reached an impasse in negotiations held to resolve a dispute concerning control of the Crete-Athens grid link, planned as a segment of the wider Greek, Cypriot and Israeli interconnection.

The failure of the two teams to reach an agreement, needed to prevent a looming energy sufficiency threat on Crete as of 2020, will now elevate the negotiations to a higher political level for direct talks between Greece’s energy minister Giorgos Stathakis and European Commissioner for Climate Action and Energy Miguel Arias Canete.

Earlier this week, Canete made clear Greece will not be granted any further deadline extensions beyond December 31, 2019 for diesel-fueled power stations operating on Crete.

Commenting yesterday, Klaus-Dieter Borchardt, Director at the European Commission’s Directorate B on the Internal Energy Market, declared all negotiating efforts at the current level of talks have now been exhausted.

Greek power grid operator IPTO and Euroasia Interconnector, a consortium of Cypriot interests heading the Greek, Cypriot and Israeli PCI-status interconnection project, have fought for control of the Crete-Athens segment.

The European Commission this week declared that Euroasia Interconnector, the project promoter of the wider Greek, Cypriot and Israeli link, also remains in charge of the Crete-Athens segment. RAE, Greece’s Regulatory Authority for Energy, has placed an SPV named Ariadne, an IPTO subsidiary, at this segment’s helm.

Canete: No further extension for Crete’s diesel-run power stations

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Greece will not be given any further deadline extensions beyond December 31, 2019 for diesel-fueled power stations operating on Crete, the European Commissioner for Climate Action and Energy Miguel Arias Canete has noted.

The Brussels authority was responding to a question raised by Syriza party Euro MP Stelios Kouloglou concerning Crete’s grid interconnection project delays and the island’s consequent energy sufficiency threat – if the existing power stations, high-polluting units, are withdrawn prior to the grid interconnection’s operational launch.

The Cretan interconnection – with the Peloponnese, as a first step, followed by a link with the Athens grid – represents a segment of a wider PCI-status project planned to link the Greek, Cypriot and Israeli power grids.

Cypriot energy minister Giorgos Lakkotrypis has urged his Greek counterpart Giorgos Stathakis to support action that would ensure Greece’s energy-related support for Cyprus and prevent a collapse of the PCI-status project.

The European Commission is working on the wider project’s development with all sides involved, Canete stressed in his response.

Greek power grid operator IPTO and Euroasia Interconnector, a consortium of Cypriot interests heading the Greek-Cypriot-Israeli project, have fought for control of the wider project’s Crete-Athens segment.

IPTO OKs technical committee for Crete link, wants swift action

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Power grid operator IPTO will accept the establishment of a technical committee for a supervisory role concerning compatibility between the Crete-Athens grid interconnection and a wider PCI-status project planned to link the Greek, Cypriot and Israeli power grids via Crete, but wants this committee to have delivered its final decisions by November 30 for avoidance of further delays to the Crete-Athens segment.

The Crete-Athens interconnection, ready for development in terms of technology and financing, according to IPTO, is crucial to ensure power sufficiency on Crete as of 2020.

IPTO is expected to present a full plan at a meeting in Brussels today to focus on compatibility issues concerning the Crete-Athens segment and the wider Greece-Cyprus-Israel grid interconnection.

RAE, the Regulatory Authority for Energy, recently named the SPV “Ariadne Interconnection”, an IPTO subsidiary, the Crete-Athens link’s project promoter. Euroasia Interconnector, a consortium of Cypriot interests, heads the wider Greece-Cyprus-Israel interconnection project. IPTO and Euroasia have fought for control of the Crete-Athens link segment.

The Greek and Cypriot regulatory authorities for energy, Greek and Cypriot government officials, as well as representatives of IPTO, Euroasia Interconnector, ACER, Europe’s Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators, and Belgian operator Elia, are all expected to take part at today’s meeting.

Euroasia wants RAE to change its Crete-Athens link decision

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Euroasia Interconnector, the consortium of Cypriot interests heading a PCI-status project planned to link the Greek, Cypriot and Israeli power grids via Crete, has formally requested RAE, the Regulatory Authority for Energy, to reconsider its decision to recently award a special purpose vehicle (SPV) established by Greek power grid operator IPTO financing and development control of the aforementioned wider interconnection project’s Crete-Athens segment.

This is seen as a first step in what would develop into a full legal challenge if the Cypriot consortium’s request is neglected.

Euroasia Interconnector contends that RAE’s decision to award IPTO control of the Crete-Athens interconnection is invalid as European PCI-project  regulations do not give the Greek energy authority such powers.

The problem for the Greek side is that the argument raised by Euroasia Interconnector is essentially based on the positions expressed, in writing, by the European Commission and ACER, Europe’s Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators.

According to sources, Brussels this week forwarded a new letter to Greek officials, warning that the Crete-Athens segment stands to lose its PCI status if RAE’s decision on the SPV, an IPTO subsidiary dubbed “Ariadne”, is not withdrawn or revised.

 

IPTO subsidiary replaces Euroasia as Crete-Athens link project promoter

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RAE, the Regulatory Authority for Energy, has officially declared a special purpose vehicle (SPV) established by Greek power grid operator IPTO as project promoter for the Crete-Athens grid interconnection in place of Euroasia Interconnector, the consortium heading a wider PCI-status project planned to link the Greek, Cypriot and Israeli power grids via Crete.

The SPV, named Ariadne Interconnector and established as an IPTO subsidiary, has, as a result, been given authority by RAE for the project’s financial matters and development. RAE’s decision on the matter, reached on September 10, was published yesterday in the government gazette.

The European Commission has questioned the purpose and legality of RAE’s move, seen as rushed, to award the IPTO subsidiary control of the Crete-Athens grid link.

Euroasia Interconnector, a consortium of Cypriot interests, is expected to resort to legal action following yesterday’s publication.

IPTO and Euroasia Interconnector have been locked in a dispute for control of the wider project’s Crete-Athens link.

Crete-Athens link SPV ‘illegal but IPTO can still lead project’

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The European Commission’s division for Projects of Common Interest regards an initiative by RAE, Greece’s Regulatory Authority for Energy, giving Greek power grid operator IPTO and its special purpose vehicle (SPV) development and financial control of a Crete-Athens grid interconnection plan as an illegal act, it made clear at a meeting in Brussels yesterday and called for the decision’s cancellation as a condition for the project to remain a part of Euroasia Interconnector, a wider PCI-status project planned to link the Greek, Cypriot and Israeli power grids via Crete.

Even so, the Brussels-based PCI team noted it believes IPTO can still spearhead the project’s development and called for a solution by January that would enable the Greek operator to select its project partners as long as technical requirements are supervised by a special committee as a means of ensuring compatibility between the Crete-Athens link and the wider Greek-Cypriot-Israeli interconnection.

IPTO and Cyprus’s Euroasia Interconnector consortium have been locked in a dispute for control of the wider project’s Crete-Athens link.

Crete-Athens link project to maintain its PCI status, pundits believe

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Pundits believe the European Commission’s division for Projects of Common Interest will decide to maintain the PCI status of a Crete-Athens electricity grid interconnection plan at a meeting in Brussels today, as otherwise, the future of the wider Euroasia Interconnector, a PCI-status project planned to link the Greek, Cypriot and Israeli power grids via Crete, would be placed in jeopardy.

The European Commission’s PCI division summoned officials representing all parties involved in a dispute for control of a Crete-Athens to today’s meeting in response to a recent decision by RAE, Greece’s Regulatory Authority for Energy, giving Greek power grid operator IPTO the task of establishing a special purpose vehicle (SPV) for the development of Crete’s interconnection with Athens.

According to RAE’s decision, IPTO will hold a 51 percent stake and other shareholders – the Euroasia Interconnector consortium has priority rights – will be offered 39 percent with an option for a further 10 percent.

A decision on the roles to be played by the Euroasia Interconnector consortium and European operators in the Crete-Athens link project’s development is also expected at today’s meeting.

IPTO and the Euroasia Interconnector consortium have been locked in a dispute for control of the Crete-Athens link.

RAE’s Crete-Athens link initiative lawful, IPTO contends

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A recent decision by RAE, Greece’s Regulatory Authority for Energy, to award  Greek power grid operator IPTO and its SPV Ariadne Interconnector development control of Crete’s major-scale electricity grid interconnection with Athens does not breach the terms of the wider Euroasia Interconnector, a PCI-status project planned to link the Greek, Cypriot and Israeli power grids via Crete, as the initiative puts to action a road map agreed to between the Greece’s regulatory authority and its Cypriot counterpart, IPTO have contended in comments to energypress.

IPTO and Cyprus’s Euroasia Interconnector consortium have been locked in a dispute for control of the wider project’s Crete-Athens link.

RAE needed to move ahead with its decision as a project delay in the Crete-Athens link, which threatens to create electricity shortages on Crete as of 2020, was confirmed by ACER, Europe’s Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators, the IPTO officials added.

The European Commission’s division for Projects of Common Interest has summoned officials representing all parties involved in the dispute to a Brussels meeting today.

PCI talks for Crete-Athens link rivals at meeting next week

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The European Commission’s division for Projects of Common Interest has summoned officials representing all parties involved in a dispute for control of an Crete-Athens electricity grid interconnection plan to a Brussels meeting next week to examine whether this project can retain its PCI status and, if so, under what conditions.

The Crete-Athens link is part of the wider Euroasia Interconnector, a PCI-status project planned to link the Greek, Cypriot and Israeli power grids via Crete.

Greek power grid operator IPTO and Cyprus’s Euroasia Interconnector consortium have been locked in a dispute for control of the wider project’s Crete-Athens link.

The Greek and Cypriot energy ministries and regulatory authorities for energy, as well as Belgian electricity transmission system operator Elia, given an intermediary role by Brussels for the dispute, have been invited to next week’s meeting.

Brussels called next week’s meeting in response to a recent decision by RAE, Greece’s Regulatory Authority for Energy, handing IPTO the task of establishing a special purpose vehicle (SPV) for the development of Crete’s urgently needed interconnection with Athens as a venture in which the operator will hold a 51 percent stake and other shareholders – the Euroasia Interconnector consortium has priority rights – will be offered 39 percent with an option for a further 10 percent.

The RAE initiative does not contravene the terms of a MoU signed by IPTO and the Euroasia Interconnector consortium and provides the consortium with an opportunity to participate in the Crete-Athens interconnection project, Greek energy ministry officials have supported in comments offered to energypress.

Crete faces a looming energy sufficiency threat as of 2020 because an exemption to EU law concerning power station emission limits for local high-polluting units, such as those operating on Crete, ends in December, 2019. A number of power stations on the island will need to be withdrawn.

ACER complaint on Crete-Athens link backs Brussels, project in limbo

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Just days after objections were raised by the European Commission, ACER, Europe’s Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators, has also expressed its disapproval of a decision by RAE, Greece’s Regulatory Authority for Energy, giving power grid operator IPTO permission to establish a special purpose vehicle (SPV) for financing and development control of Crete’s urgently needed major-scale electricity grid interconnection with Athens.

ACER, which made clear its discontent – and astonishment – in a letter forwarded to RAE, described the authority’s initiative as a “unilateral move”, energypress sources informed. RAE has yet to respond.

The Crete-Athens interconnection project’s future now appears to be in limbo as this second intervention by a European institution adds further weight to the European Commission’s insinuation that the link would cease to enjoy PCI status and subsequent EU backing if the RAE decision is upheld.

Brussels reacted to the RAE move by noting the authority cannot award Crete’s major-scale interconnection with Athens to any party until the end of the year, the time period given to Euroasia Interconnector – a consortium of Cypriot interests responsible for a wider project planned to link the Greek, Cypriot and Israeli power grids – to decide if it will utilize a right offered for a 39 percent stake, or less, in the venture to develop the Crete-Athens link.

Compatibility concerns have already been raised about four transformers to be installed in the wider Athens area, Crete, Cyprus and Israel for the Euroasia Interconnector.

Also, Cypriot officials, in comments to energypress, cited the emergence of a national issue as Cyprus now finds itself detached from the EU – regarding the project – as a result of the RAE move at a time when the island’s Turkish-occupied northeast is seeking a power grid interconnection with Turkey.

 

 

 

Brussels opposes RAE move giving IPTO Cretan link control

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The European Commission has raised objections to last week’s RAE (Regulatory Authority for Energy) decision awarding power grid operator IPTO financing and development control of Crete’s urgently needed major-scale electricity grid interconnection with Athens.

Just days ago, IPTO established a special purpose vehicle (SPV) named Ariadne for the project.

Brussels, in an email forwarded to all parties involved, noted that RAE cannot award Crete’s major-scale link with Athens to any party until the end of the year, the time period given to Euroasia Interconnector – a consortium of Cypriot interests responsible for a wider PCI-status project planned to link the Greek, Cypriot and Israeli power grids – to decide if it will utilize a right offered for a 39 percent stake, or less, in the venture to develop the Crete-Athens link.

The European Commission’s move essentially comes as a warning suggesting the Crete-Athens link will be regarded as a national Greek project rather than a PCI-status European project if RAE’s decision to award IPTO the project remains valid.

The Euroasia Interconnector consortium wants to avoid legal action but cannot exclude such an outcome, sources informed.

Serbia discussed as Italy alternative for East Med project

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An alternative route, replacing Italy with Serbia, for the ambitious 5 billion-euro East Med natural gas pipeline, planned to carry southeast Mediterranean natural gas deposits to the EU via Greece, was discussed at a five-way meeting in Thessaloniki last Friday between leading energy-sector officials representing Greece, Israel, Bulgaria, Serbia and the US.

The meeting’s participants expressed concern over the new Italian coalition’s unfavorable view of such projects. In June, the Italian coalition described as “pointless” the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) project, the final stage of a bigger project – the Southern Gas Corridor – that will take Azeri gas to western Europe. Intended to diversify Europe’s natural gas sources and lessen the reliance on Russia, the TAP project represents the cornerstone of the EU’s energy security policy.

An extremely complex 1,900-km project whose greatest part would run underwater, East Med is planned to conclude in Italy. It is being supported by the EU as a PCI- status project.

Serbia’s mining and energy minister Aleksandar Antic, one of the five participants at the Thessaloniki meeting, held within the framework of the Thessaloniki International Trade Fair, is believed to have embraced the plan for an alternative East Med route that would include his country – should Italy not clarify its position.

 

IPTO given control and task of forming SPV for urgent Cretan link

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RAE, the Regulatory Authority for Energy, has decided to award Greece’s power grid operator IPTO the task of swiftly establishing a special purpose vehicle (SPV) for the development of Crete’s urgently needed major-scale electricity grid interconnection with Athens, sources have informed, confirming a previous energypress report.

Highlighting the level of urgency the matter has acquired, IPTO officials were informed of the decision over the phone and asked to set up an SPV as soon as possible.

Crete faces a looming energy sufficiency threat as of 2020 because an exemption to EU law concerning power station emission limits for local high-polluting units, such as those operating on Crete, ends in December, 2019. A number of power stations on the island will need to be withdrawn.

According to sources, the SPV will initially stand as a wholly-owned IPTO subsidiary while, three months later, by the end of the year, a tender will be staged inviting investor-operators to bid for a minority 49 percent stake in the venture.

The Euroasia Interconnector consortium, responsible for the wider Euroasia Interconnector, a PCI-status project planned to link the Greek, Cypriot and Israeli power grids via Crete, will be offered priority rights for a 39 percent minority stake, as noted in a Memorandum of Cooperation signed by IPTO and the Euroasia Interconnector consortium.

If Euroasia Interconnector, a consortium of Cypriot interests, does not exercise this priority right, then the minority 39 percent stake will be offered to network operators such as Belgium’s Elia or France’s RTE, both of which have expressed interest. They would be expected to also seek acquiring the remaining 10 percent stake.

IPTO and Euroasia Interconnector, a consortium of Cypriot interests, have been involved in an extended dispute for control of the wider project’s Cretan segment.

The RAE decision comes as a counterproposal to a European Commission initiative that gave the Euroasia Interconnector consortium until the end of the year to resolve its dispute with IPTO. But it does give the consortium some time to decide.

 

 

IPTO to skip Brussels meeting on Euroasia Crete link dispute

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Greece’s power grid operator IPTO has chosen not to be represented at a meeting scheduled for today in Brussels as an effort to resolve the operator’s dispute with the Euroasia Interconnector consortium for control of the development of Crete’s major-scale electricity grid interconnection with Athens.

The Euroasia Interconnector consortium, responsible for the wider Euroasia Interconnector, a PCI-status project planned to link the Greek, Cypriot and Israeli power grids via Crete, has insisted on also controlling the project’s Cretan segment.

The adamant stance of Euroasia Interconnector, a consortium of Cypriot interests, makes it pointless for IPTO to be represented at today’s meeting, IPTO officials have concluded, according to enegypress sources.

The Greek and Cypriot regulatory authorities for energy and European Commission officials are all expected be participate at today’s meeting.

Over the past couple of months, the Euroasia consortium has claimed Belgian power grid operator Elia would finance its stake in the Euroasia project. This has yet to occur.

According to sources, Elia intends to conduct a feasibility study to decide if its involvement in the investment plan for the Greek-Cypriot-Israeli interconnection project would be viable.

Sources have not ruled out a meeting between IPTO and Elia officials during the current month for investment plan talks.

At this stage, RAE, Greece’s Regulatory Authority for Energy, appears likely to award IPTO the Crete-Athens segment of the wider project by early September.

RAE set to award IPTO crucial Crete-Athens interconnection

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RAE, Greece’s Regulatory Authority for Energy, appears to have reached a decision to award the Cretan major interconnection project’s development to the power grid operator IPTO with conditions attached.

IPTO and the Euroasia Interconnector consortium, responsible for the wider Euroasia Interconnector, a PCI-status project planned to link the Greek, Cypriot and Israeli power grids via Crete, have fought to secure control of the large-scale Cretan segment, to link the island with Athens. This dispute has led to delays.

RAE may announce its decision within the next few days and, in doing so, attribute the need to push ahead with the major-scale Cretan link to the island’s looming energy sufficiency threat in 2020, energypress sources informed. An exemption to EU law concerning power station emission limits for local high-polluting units, such as those operating on Crete, is set to expire in December, 2019.

According to sources, RAE officials and the European Commission have been in constant touch in recent times for a solution to the local segment of the PCI-classified Greece-Cyprus-Israel grid interconnection.

The European Commission appears to have insisted on a last-ditch effort that may lead to an agreement between IPTO and the Euroasia Interconnector, a consortium of Cypriot interests. However, it is feared course of action could take up valuable time. Crete’s energy sufficiency alert is expected to be given precedence.

Euroasia seeks restart in Cretan link talks, IPTO remains firm

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The Euroasia Interconnector consortium has requested a restart of failed negotiations concerning the development of Crete’s major interconnection planned to link the island’s power grid with Athens, sources have informed.

Negotiations between the Euroasia Interconnector and IPTO, Greece’s power grid operator, both seeking control of the Cretan major interconnection project’s development, fell through less than a fortnight ago, and, in response, the European Commission gave RAE, Greece’s Regulatory Authority for Energy, two months to decide on how the Cretan segment of the wider Euroasia Interconnector project will be developed and by whom.

The wider Euroasia Interconnector project, a PCI-status project awarded to the Euroasia Interconnector consortium, is planned to link the Greek, Cypriot and Israeli power grids via Crete.

In the ordeal’s latest development, the Euroasia Interconnector consortium has just forwarded a letter to all parties involved – the European Commission, ACER (Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators), RAE and its Cypriot counterpart RAEK, as well as IPTO – seeking fresh talks following the recent breakdown.

The Euroasia Interconnector consortium, in its letter, appears willing to accept a minority role for the Cretan segment of the wider interconnection project but insists on having a say in interoperability matters and project specifications.

In the letter, the Euroasia Interconnector consortium also doubts a recent ACER update  contending the Greek-Cypriot-Israeli interconnection has fallen well behind schedule and, furthermore, questions whether RAE has the authority to become involved in decisions concerning the project’s Cretan interconnection segment.

The Euroasia Interconnector consortium, in the letter, insists on the staging of a tender for all the project’s converters. This is one of the contentious issues that has troubled the consortium’s negotiations with IPTO as the power grid operator views the stance as pressure by Euroasia Interconnector for control over technical specifications and tenders concerning the project.

IPTO sees no reason to reconsider or change its course as a result of the letter, sources noted. Negotiations between the two sides broke down at a meeting on July 12.

Prior to the collapse, IPTO proposed the establishment of a special purpose vehicle (SPV), which the Greek power grid operator would control with a majority stake, to finance, develop and operate the Cretan interconnection. Regulators and the European Commission viewed the IPTO proposal as the only basis for negotiations before the breakdown.

 

Euroasia consortium doubts ACER report, insists on Crete link control

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The Euroasia Interconnector consortium awarded the PCI-status Euroasia Interconnector planned to link the Greek, Cypriot and Israeli power grids, has strongly doubted an ACER (Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators) report noting the project’s development has fallen two years behind schedule and insists it should be given control of the major Cretan interconnection, part of the wider Mediterranean project.

The Cypriot regulatory authority for energy appears to be lending its support to the Euroasia Interconnector consortium over the issue.

The latest developments could affect hopes of progress following a July 12 meeting when RAE, Greece’s Regulatory Authority for Energy, was tasked, by the European Commission, to decide within two months on how the Cretan major interconnection segment of the Euroasia Interconnector project will be developed and by whom.

The Euroasia Interconnector consortium and IPTO, Greece’s power grid operator, have been at odds in their efforts to secure control of the development of the Cretan major interconnection planned to link the island’s grid with Athens.

The ACER report is intended to serve as a key guide for RAE’s decision-making in the dispute.

Recent talks between RAE and IPTO suggested that the Greek power grid operator would be awarded the contract for the major-Cretan interconnection as part of the Euroasia Interconnector. However, initial support by the European Commission for such a course of action now seems indefinite.

The Euroasia Interconnector consortium continues to believe it should be given the upper hand for the Cretan major interconnection’s development. Highlighting this stance, the consortium has organized a public consultation event for today at seaside Megara, on the western outskirts of Athens, for talks with local authorities and residents on project issues.

The major Cretan interconnection’s submarine power cable is planned to run from Crete to the Megara region before continuing as an overland connection to a central grid facility in Athens.

 

 

 

 

IPTO preparing to take on major Cretan link with strict terms

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Power grid operator IPTO appears to have gained a clear advantage over the Euroasia Interconnector consortium for the construction of Crete’s major interconnection, planned to link the island’s grid with Athens, following a failed effort by the two sides to form a partnership for the project.

Awarding the submarine project’s development to IPTO is one of a number of options available to RAE, Greece’s Regulatory Authority for Energy.

RAE is currently engaged in constant talks with the European Commission and IPTO for clarification of terms and obligations being prepared to ensure that the project’s schedule is maintained.

Officials are currently working on defining situations that will constitute  unexpected developments and determining the maximum level of fines for  project delays.

The European Commission’s role in the Cretan major interconnection is crucial as, even with IPTO at the helm of the project’s development, the wider Euroasia Interconnector project – headed by the Euroasia Interconnector consortium and planned to link the Greek, Cypriot and Israeli power grids via Crete – has been classified an EU Project of Common Interest (PCI).

Preservation of the PCI status will enable the existing WACC (Weighted Average Cost of Capital) terms to be maintained, which would prevent the need for new negotiations.

A completion date of 2022 instead of 2023, as was originally planned, could be agreed to for Crete’s major interconnection.

Fears of power supply shortages on Crete in the summer of 2020, stemming from an EU-related commitment to close down older power stations operating on the island, have not subsided.

RAE is pressuring IPTO to complete and launch Crete’s small-scale interconnection, to link the island with the Peloponnese, by mid-2020 to prevent power shortages. But the authority believes 2021 is a more likely delivery date.

 

 

 

Chances of an IPTO-Euroasia agreement for Crete link fading

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A deadline set by RAE, Greece’s Regulatory Authority for Energy, for an agreement between IPTO, Greece’s power grid operator, and Euroasia Interconnector, both vying to secure control of the construction of Crete’s major interconnection, linking the island’s grid with Athens, has failed to bring the two sides closer together, energypress sources have informed.

RAE has pushed for IPTO and Euroasia Interconnector to establish a joint venture for the interconnection project based on the terms of a MoU signed by the two sides last October. The two sides are expected to go into a RAE meeting today without any signs of convergence.

The Euroasia Interconnector consortium, which insists it was formed to link the Greek, Cypriot and Israeli power grids via a Crete interconnection as an entire project, does not agree on the establishment of a special purpose vehicle (SPV) with IPTO for the project. Regulators and the European Commission see this as the only basis for negotiations leading to an agreement.

However, not all hope of an agreement has vanished. Today’s meeting could offer the two sides a final opportunity for an agreement. Klaus-Dieter Borchardt, Director of the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Energy, who was in Athens just days ago to inspect on energy-sector reforms and EU energy policy commitments leading to the European energy market’s unification, showed particular interest in the dispute and vowed to support efforts for a solution.

The Euroasia Interconnector project linking the Greek, Cypriot and Israeli power grids via Crete has been classified as an EU Project of Common Interest (PCI).

If no agreement is reached today, then RAE is expected to take the matter into its own hands, with European Commission support. The authority could stage a tender for the construction of Crete’s major interconnection, launch a tender for its financing, or award the project’s construction to IPTO, with a specific schedule intact.

The announcement of a tender would come as an unfavorable development for both IPTO and Euroasia Interconnector as more investors would probably seek involvement in the project, promising regulated and guaranteed earnings.

The MoU signed by IPTO and Euroasia Interconnector last October envisions a stake of at least 51 percent for IPTO in the project, 39 percent for Euroasia Interconnector, and 10 percent for private-sector investors. It also foresees the establishment of a special purpose vehicle (SPV) by the two firms to take on the project’s financing and development.

Euroasia Interconnector appears to be demanding equal powers for all technical matters and sub-contracts concerning the project.

 

 

IPTO, Euroasia under tremendous pressure for Crete interconnection deal

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IPTO, Greece’s power grid operator, and Euroasia Interconnector, both vying to secure control of the construction of Crete’s major interconnection, linking the island’s grid with Athens, will go into a meeting today, organized by RAE, Greece’s Regulatory Authority for Energy, under great pressure to reach an agreement. The two sides stand far apart at present.

Besides IPTO and Euroasia Interconnector, tomorrow’s meeting will also involve officials representing RAE, its Cypriot counterpart, the European Commission and ACER, the European Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators.

A preliminary meeting staged yesterday made clear that the establishment of a partnership between IPTO and Euroasia Interconnector, based on the terms of a MoU signed by the two sides last October, is the only way of resolving the dispute.

One authority involved in the matter noted that the two sides will be given a limited amount of time, without the possibility of any extensions, to establish a partnership.

If this is not achieved, then RAE, fully supported by the European Commission, could either stage a tender offering the project’s development, proceed with a competitive procedure concerning its financing, or offer IPTO the project’s development, based on a specific schedule.

The MoU signed by IPTO and Euroasia Interconnector last October envisions a stake of at least 51 percent for IPTO in the project, 39 percent for Euroasia Interconnector, and 10 percent for private-sector investors. It also foresees the establishment of a special purpose vehicle (SPV) by the two firms to take on the project’s financing and development.

Euroasia Interconnector appears to be demanding equal powers for all technical matters and sub-contracts concerning the project.

The prospect of IPTO being responsible for sub-stations and the cable on the Greek side was discussed at yesterday’s preliminary meeting. In this case, Euroasia Interconnector will be exclusively responsible for technical matters concerning other segments of the project.

If such an arrangement is not agreed to, then the project’s procedures will need to recommence from scratch. Both sides would lose in this case as any new tender would attract additional investors for involvement in a project promising regulated and guaranted earnings.

The Euroasia Interconnector consortium insists it was formed to link the Greek, Cypriot and Israeli power grids via a Crete interconnection as an entire project, adding it has already been classified as an EU Project of Common Interest (PCI).

 

Alexandroupoli FSRU business decision seen by end of year

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A road map prepared by shareholders of a consortium for the development and operation of an FSRU project in Alexandroupoli, northeastern Greece, lists three basic steps still needed for the venture’s development and operation.

Greece’s DEPA, the public gas corporation, and Bulgaria’s BEH still need to complete negotiations and sign agreements concerning their involvement; an official market test measuring capacity coverage by interested third parties must be staged; and a finalized business plan that would enable the project’s development to commence towards the end of the year, are listed as three pending steps in the road map.

Current developments suggest the official market test will be held imminently, most likely by the summer.

The Alexandroupoli FSRU is seen as a project that may ensure supply of new natural gas quantities for the Greek and regional southeast European markets; contribute to the diversification of supply sources and routes; increase competition, to the benefit of consumers; and boost the reliability and flexibility of both the national and regional gas systems.

These factors have helped reinstate the Alexandroupoli FSRU as an EU Project of Common Interest (PCI).

The project’s interests are linked to those of the Greek-Bulgarian IGB Interconnector.

The Alexandroupoli FSRU plan was initiated by Gastrade, a member of the Copelouzos group, before Gaslog, an international LNG carrier, also officially joined the consortium. Due dilligence is currently in progress for DEPA’s entry with a 20 percent stake. DEPA signed a related agreement with Gastrade in October.

Negotiations with Bulgaria’s BEH are also in progress. The firm’s official entry into the project is expected soon.

 

 

 

Tender seen for subterranean gas storage unit in the north

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The energy ministry and TAIPED, the state privatization fund, are making preliminary  moves leading to an international tender for the development of a subterranean natural gas storage facility in the south Kavala offshore area through utilization of a virtually depleted gas deposit.

The ministry is preparing a ministerial decision that will officially brand the project as an independent natural gas system (ASFA), or private storage facility, a necessary step ahead of the tender. TAIPED is preparing official texts for the tender, which, according to energypress sources, will be announced in the second half of this year and most definitely within the year.

An exploitation license held by Energean Oil – following a series of mandatory extensions provided to keep the facility operational – is due to expire in November.

The project is not only seen as useful but necessary for bolstering the country’s supply security and chances of becoming a regional energy hub.

Details concerning the project’s development and exact role remain undetermined.

Besides moving to declare the depleted deposit as an independent natural gas system, which would lead to the staging of an international tender, authorities have also considered two other options. One entails offering the development rights to Energean Oil, holder of the deposit’s existing operational license. Passing on the subterranean storage facility’s  investment and utilization rights to DESFA, the natural gas grid operator, has also been considered.

The south Kavala gas deposit is still producing small amounts being exploited by Energean Oil. The company had proposed converting the virtually depleted deposit into a natural gas storage facility back in 2010. A related application was submitted by the firm the following year, shortly before control of the facility was passed on to TAIPED for appraisal. A period of indeciveness by the Greek State followed, which led to the project’s removal from the EU’s Projects of Common Interest list. The facility regained its PCI status this year as it is regarded pivotal for energy security in Greece and the western Balkans, while also having potential to support the TAP gas pipeline, now being developed and planned to cross northern Greece.

The south Kavala project’s cost is estimated between 250 and 300 million euros.

French energy group Engie, a successor of GDF Suez, Europe’s oldest energy firm, has expressed an interest in the south Kavala project. Company officials who were part of French president Emmanuel Macron’s delegation for an official visit to Athens last September singled out the south Kavala project. Engie is already present in the Greek market with a 25 percent stake in electricity supplier Heron.

 

 

License extension of south Kavala gas deposit signals storage utilization

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The government appears to be moving ahead with a plan to develop a depleted south Kavala gas deposit in the country’s north as an underground natural gas storage facility.

Last Friday, in the latest development, energy minister Giorgos Stathakis signed an agreement to extend the project’s license until November 23, 2018.

Early this month EDEY, the Greek Hydrocarbon Management Company, expressed its support for the project’s development in a statement forwarded to the energy ministry.

The Kavala project has been placed under the jurisdiction of TAIPED, the state privatization fund, since 2011. However, the fund has yet to make any serious moves on this front. Instead, the government believes the depleted gas deposit possesses major utilization potential.

Last February, the energy ministry assembled a working group headed by secretary general Mihalis Veriopoulos to examine natural gas storage solutions following problems encountered in Greece last winter. The depleted gas deposit in south Kavala is one solution under consideration.

This project’s development has also received backing from Energean Oil & Gas, which along with its subsidiary Kavala Oil, holds an exploitation license for the depleted south Kavala deposit.

On numerous occasions, Energean has requested to utilize the former deposit as a storage facility through a conversion of its current exploitation license into a natural gas storage license.

Kavala Oil’s managing director Dimitris Gontikas, speaking at a recent Capital Vision conference, noted that the conversion plan represents a key part of Greece’s natural gas supply security plan and would also reinforce the country’s geopolitical role, as is intended by the government.

The project has been reincluded on the EU’s Projects of Common Interest (PCI) list after being removed two years ago, indicating a wider European interest in the project. Subsequently, new feasibility studies are expected.

Older studies had estimated the project would cost approximately 400 million euros to develop, but this figure is expected to be considerably lower as a result of progress made in this domain.

 

 

 

Kavala gas storage facility to reenter PCI list, decisions today

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The development of an underground natural gas storage facility at a depleted deposit in south Kavala, removed from the EU’s list of Projects of Common Interest (PCIs) two years ago, is expected to be reincluded, which would provide the project with access to EU funding, while the Alexandroupoli FSRU, also in the country’s north, stands a decent chance of being added to the list, when regional working groups gather for a Brussels meeting today to make final decisions on the content of the 3rd PCI list. This finalized list will then need to be endorsed by the European Commission.

A first list of PCIs was published in 2013 and a second in 2015.

Energy projects are selected for PCI inclusion based on a number of criteria, including their impact on at least two EU countries, as well as their ability to enhance EU market integration, increase competition and security of supply.

The Alexandroupoli FSRU, whose development would facilitate LNG supply, especially American, to the wider Balkan region and help reduce Russia’s dominance, was not included on a provisional PCI list prepared on June 30 as a lead-up to the latest gathering of regional working groups.

The Greek government, maneuvering in search of political support for PCI inclusion of the Alexandroupoli LNG terminal, has received considerable European and US backing for the project, seen as one of strategic importance.

Kavala gas storage facility and Alexandroupoli LNG terminal aside, all other PCIs of Greek interest, five in total, should maintain their places on the updated list, energypress sources informed.

The Poseidon submarine gas pipeline linking Greece and Italy is one of these. This pipeline is planned to be incorporated with two other prospective projects, Turkish Stream, to transmit Russian natural gas to the region, and East Med, to carry southeast Mediterranean natural gas deposits along a route stretching from Israel to Europe.

East Med is also expected to keep its place on the PCI list.

So, too, is the submarine Euro Asia Interconnector, to link the Greek, Cypriot and Israeli electricity networks.

The Greek-Bulgarian IGB Interconnector, promising a cross-border gas pipeline link, and the Tesla natural gas pipeline, planned to connect with Turkish Stream for a vertical crossing through Greece, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (Fyrom), Serbia and Hungary, make up the other two projects seen holding on to their PCI list places.

Alexandroupoli FSRU project headed for PCI list reentry

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The prospective floating LNG terminal in Alexandroupoli, northeastern Greece, stands a serious chance of regaining its place on a list of EU Projects of Common Interest (PCI), the results of a latest regional working group meeting in Brussels have indicated.

The Greek government’s effort to put the Alexandroupoli floating storage regasification unit (FSRU) back on the PCI list, which would facilitate EU funding, is believed to have gained momentum. The project is now expected to be placed in a second-tier group of projects seeking entry into the PCI list and, from there, eventually be promoted to the main PCI list, an energypress source informed.

The Alexandroupoli FSRU, to be developed by Gastrade, is expected to gain further PCI credibility once plans to develop the nearby Greek-Bulgarian IGB gas interconnector have been finalized.

As was recently reported by energypress, a plan to transform a depleted natural gas deposit in south Kavala, northern Greece, into an underground gas storage facility has regained its place on a revised PCI list, released on June 30.

The south Kavala underground gas storage facility had been removed from the PCI list during a revision made two years ago.

All other infrastructure projects of Greek interest have retained their places on this revised PCI list. These include the Poseidon gas pipeline, planned to run from Greece to Italy, indicating that this project is a serious contender for a role in a prospective new route to carry Russian gas to Europe (Turkish Stream) as well as another major project to bring gas to Europe from the eastern Mediterranean (East Med).

The Euro Asia Interconnector, a submarine cable project to link the Greek, Cypriot and Israeli electricity networks, as well as East Med, a prospective gas pipeline to transmit gas from Cyprus’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) to mainland Greece via Crete, have also retained their places on the PCI list.

So, too, has the IGB, the Greek-Bulgarian Interconnector, for which a final investment decision is expected imminently.

Tesla, a prospective natural gas pipeline to offer a link from Greece to Austria, is also on the updated PCI list.

 

 

Kavala gas storage unit back on PCI list, FSRU in north ejected

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A plan to transform a depleted natural gas deposit in south Kavala, northern Greece, into an underground gas storage facility has been re-included on an unfinalized list of EU Projects of Common Interest (PCI), while the development of a new floating storage regasification unit (FSRU) in Alexandroupoli, northeastern Greece, to be developed by Gastrade, has been removed from the list.

Latest revisions to the list, still unfinalized, were made during a session on June 30. EU officials are expected to meet in mid-July to finalize the PCI list before it is endorsed by the European Commission.

Over the past few days, the Greek government has intensified efforts to also have the Alexandroupoli FSRU included on the PCI list, which would facilitate EU funding.

The south Kavala underground gas storage facility, now back on the PCI list, had been removed during a revision made two years ago.

Its construction cost has been slashed to about half of an initial estimate of 400 million euros, which makes the project’s sustainability less demanding.

Energean Oil & Gas, the Greek firm exploiting deposits in the wider Kavala region, holds the rights to the depleted south Kavala deposit. The company has made repeated requests for a conversion of its existing south Kavala deposit license into a gas storage license, which is permittted by current law.

All other infrastructure projects of Greek interest have retained their places on the PCI list, energypress sources have informed.

These include the Poseidon gas pipeline, planned to run from Greece to Italy, indicating that this project is a serious contender for a role in a prospective new route to carry Russian gas to Europe (Turkish Stream) as well as another major project to bring gas to Europe from the eastern Mediterranean (East Med).

The Euro Asia Interconnector, a submarine cable project to link the Greek, Cypriot and Israeli electricity networks, as well as East Med, a prospective gas pipeline to transmit gas from Cyprus’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) to mainland Greece via Crete, have also retained their places on the PCI list.

So, too, has the IGB, the Greek-Bulgarian Interconnector, for which a final investment decision is expected imminently.

Tesla, a prospective natural gas pipeline to offer a link from Greece to Austria, is also on the updated PCI list.

 

 

Updated PCI list for energy projects covering 2015 to 2017 ‘finalized’

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The European Commission’s updated list of Projects of Common Interest (PCI) for the period covering 2015 to 2017 was finalized this week, the Greek Economy Ministry’s General Director for Strategic Investments, Nikolaos Agaliotis, told a business and investment forum, Natural Gas and Growth, in Athens today.

Agaliotis, who was in Brussels just days ago, informed the forum that the PCI list concerning locally linked energy infrastructure projects – PCI status ensures EU funding – is comprised of the IGB interconnector to link Greece and Bulgaria; an LNG terminal to be developed in Alexandroupoli, northern Greece, by DEPA, the Public Gas Corporation, and Gastrade, a company belonging to the Copelouzos corporate group; a DESFA (gas grid operator) natural gas compressor station; the TAP (Trans Adratic Pipeline) project; the Greece-Italy segment of the Poseidon (ITGI) pipeline; East Med, a prospective network of submarine and overland pipeline infrastructure to offer a direct link for deposits in the southeast Mediterranean area with the European gas network via Greece; and the local segment of the Tesla gas pipeline, planned to cross Turkey, Greece, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (Fyrom), Serbia, and Hungary, before ending at the Baumgarten gas hub in Austria.

Tesla was a last-minute addition to the PCI list as a result of interest being expressed for the project’s development, Agaliotis noted.

The forum, a two-day event, concludes tomorrow.