TERNA

March deadline for 20% stake in Ariadne Interconnection

Posted on by admin

Qualifiers through to the second round of a tender offering a 20 percent stake in Ariadne Interconnection, a subsidiary founded by Greek power grid operator IPTO for the development of the Crete-Athens grid interconnection, are expected to be set a 1Q 2024 deadline for their binding bids, energypress sources have informed.

All four first-round entrants have qualified for the procedure’s next stage following approval by RAAEY, the Regulatory Authority for Energy, Environment, and Water. All four are expected to maintain their interest and submit binding bids.

The procedure’s Virtual Data Room, to offer bidders full details on the project, is expected to be made available early in the new year, the sources noted. The shareholders’ agreement and business plan are among the details to be made available to participants.

The tender’s four second-round participants are GEK-TERNA; a partnership involving Macquarie Super Core Infrastructure Fund and Phaethon Holdings (Copelouzos group); Italian operator Terna SpA; and StateGrid International Development Belgium.

Taking into account the Crete-Athens grid interconnection’s current rate of progress, IPTO expects the project’s development to be completed late in 2024 and, following testing, be ready for commercial launch by mid-2025.

Progress is also being reported on the equity make-up of the newly established Great Sea Interconnector, another IPTO subsidiary, established for the development of the electrical grid interconnection to link the Greek, Cypriot and Israeli systems.

The Cypriot State, which has already expressed interest to become a shareholder of the Great Sea Interconnector consortium, is working on completing its entry by late January.

IPTO has also signed Memorandums of Understanding for the same purpose with TAQA, the Abu Dhabi National Energy Company, and Israeli fund Aluma. Other investors, including from the USA, have also expressed interest to join the Great Sea Interconnector consortium.

IPTO’ aims to complete the Great Sea Interconnector consortium’s equity make-up by the end of March, 2024 with a majority stake for the operator and the Cypriot State.

Balkan potential highlighted by IPTO’s interest in MEPSO

Posted on by admin

Greek power grid operator IPTO’s interest, for some time now, to acquire North Macedonia’s grid operator MEPSO, either through a strategic agreement or a share capital increase, points to the existence of opportunities for energy infrastructure upgrades in the neighboring country as well as the growing role to be played by electricity networks and corridors in the wider region.

As the energy transition progresses, electricity networks and corridors will no longer merely serve as electricity transmission lines, but promise to gradually replace oil and gas pipelines.

Greece, at present, remains sorely absent from the wider Balkan energy-sector activity. IPTO has yet to make any big moves beyond the country’s frontiers.

Though the western Balkans are currently experiencing a green-energy boom with RES investment growth having reached double digits in some countries, regional networks are outdated and insufficient to support this robust investment interest.

Though it is vitally important for Greece to assert itself as an influential energy-sector player in the Balkans, the flow of energy from the region towards central Europe is currently being controlled by Italy.

Italy’s influence, on energy matters, over the Balkans was expanded in recent years with Montenegro as a base and Italian power grid operator in a leading role, as highlighted by its acquisition of a 22 percent stake in Montenegrin power grid operator CGES.

Identifying the pivotal energy role of the Balkans early on, Italy took a strategic decision for the development of a first route linking the western Balkans and Europe in the form of a 445-km line – 423 km of it as an underwater Adriatic Sea crossing – from Pescara, on Italy’s east coast, to Kotor, on Montenegro’s Adriatic coast.

The small Balkan country has since become a bridge of energy exchange between eastern and western Europe as this Adriatic link has interconnected Italy’s network with those of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Kosovo, Albania, and, by extension, Bulgarian and Romania.

Italian power grid operator Terna is now examining the prospect of boosting this line’s transmission capacity from 600 MW to 1,200 MW. Giuseppina Di Foggia, CEO at Terna, recently held talks in Rome with Montenegro’s new president, Jakov Milatovic, about this project.

 

Subsea survey for Greek-Italian cable capacity boost early 2024

Posted on by admin

A project aiming to triple the capacity of the Greek-Italian electrical grid interconnection is set for a challenging stage that entails thorough mapping of the seabed along the existing line’s 220-km route.

Survey work for this project is planned to begin in early 2024 following an agreement reached earlier this week at a wide-ranging Athens meeting between Giuseppina Di Foggia, CEO at Italian grid operator TERNA, and Manos Maousakis, the chief executive at Greek power grid operator IPTO.

The TERNA chief was joined by a team that included the company’s CFO as well as the head of major projects and international development.

Greece is under growing pressure to establish new export outlets for the country’s excess renewable energy. The country’s electricity exporting activity is becoming more frequent during midday hours. Also, Italy, it should be pointed out, is Europe’s biggest electricity importer.

According to sources, the Greek and Italian power grid operators are exploring all options, based on the respective experience of each company, to boost the capacity of the Greek-Italian subsea cable link from 500 MW to 1,500 MW as swiftly and efficiently as possible.

At this week’s meeting, held Tuesday, IPTO and TERNA also agreed on the need for new corridors transporting RES production from southern to central Europe.

TERNA, Europe’s biggest operator, is a highly influential market player operating 26 international interconnections and present on three continents.

 

Greek energy market attracting major interest at London roadshow

Posted on by admin

Foreign funds are expressing major investment interest in Greece’s renewable energy market as well as the country’s plan for green energy transportation from the Middle East, while major international energy groups appear extremely interested in Greek upstream developments and the ongoing transformation of Greece as a natural gas hub, a series of one-on-one and group meetings between highly ranked officials of Greek energy groups and international investors have highlighted following the first day of a roadshow in London.

The London event, co-organized by the Athens bourse and Morgan Stanley, has already indicated that 2023 could be a bumper year for foreign investments in Greece’s energy sector.

Of 29 Greek companies taking part in the road show, ten hail from the energy sector, a representation highlighting the strong international investment interest in Greece’s energy market.

Power grid operator IPTO’s ADMIE Holdings, Cenergy, Ellaktor, Elvalhalcor, Helleniq Energy, Motor Oil, Mytilineos, PPC, TERNA and Viohalko, the ten Greek energy groups taking part, will hold further meetings with investors today. These sessions could lay the foundations for new deals.

Over 300 meetings are scheduled to take place at the London event. Many of these will purely focus on energy matters.

 

Lignite mine interest rekindled by PPC plan to boost reserves

Posted on by admin

Power utility PPC’s effort to boost lignite extraction for reinforced reserves, needed as this energy source has returned to the fore, at least temporarily, in the crisis, is helping to bring back into the picture the state-owned Ahlada and Vevi lignite mines, both sidelined, as the interest of private investors in these units has been revitalized.

Major energy and construction groups are expressing renewed interest in these lignite mines, both in northern Greece’s Florina region, sources informed. PPC’s lignite reserves stockpiled at power stations have reached 2.7 million tons but are still considered insufficient.

Lignitoryhia Ahladas SA, the company to which two lignite mines, Ahlada 1 and Ahlada 2, were leased by the Greek State, was declared defunct by the energy ministry in July as a result of its failure to meet agreement terms, primarily lease payments. The Ahlada mines have supplied lignite to PPC’s Meliti power station. Further back, Ahlada was operated by the AKTOR-TERNA partnership.

As for the Vevi mine, the country’s first lignite mine for which an attempt was made to transfer its operations to the private sector, three companies, Mytilineos, TERNA and Aktor, participated in a tender in 2008 before Aktor was eventually named the winning bidder in late 2014.

However, Aktor was not able to pursue the project as concessionaire after the left-wing Syriza party came into power shortly afterwards. The project agreement was never brought to parliament for approval during the Syriza government’s two tenures, from January, 2015 to July, 2019.

 

Greek-Italian grid link repair work subduing power prices

Posted on by admin

The Greek-Italian grid interconnection’s temporary disruption for repair work is offering partial protection against wholesale electricity price increases in Greece.

The temporary-closure period for the grid interconnection, which has been sidelined towards both directions since August 19, has just been extended until September 3 following a request made by Italy’s power grid operator Terna, according to an announcement made by IPTO, Greece’s power grid operator.

Last Friday and Saturday, the wholesale electricity price was 300 euros per MWh higher in Italy compared to Greece.

Under normal conditions, price differences between neighboring markets prompts electricity export activity towards the lower-priced country.

Greek electricity exports were considerable in July, reaching 500 GWh, data provided by IPTO showed. Of this total, 351 GWh was exported to Italy, 253 GWh to Albania, 184 GWh to North Macedonia and 90 GWh to Bulgaria.

Electricity export figures will be subdued in August as a result of the disruption of the Greek-Italian grid interconnection. The link has been closed down for repairs on numerous occasions in recent years.

 

 

IPTO’s Adequacy Report for reserve mechanism, CRM near

Posted on by admin

Power grid operator IPTO is close to completing its updated grid Adequacy Report, expected to be ready within December for delivery to the European Commission. The report is needed to determine the shape of Greece’s proposals for a Strategic Reserve Mechanism and a Capacity Remuneration Mechanism (CRM).

The way towards completing the Adequacy Report was paved by the recent establishment of three required indices –  CONE (Cost of New Entry), VOLL (Value of Lost Load) and Reliability Standard – by RAE, the Regulatory Authority for Energy, and the energy ministry. These indices need to be factored into calculations before the Adequacy Report can be completed.

Plans for two new gas-fueled power stations, one by a TERNA-Motor Oil partnership, the other by the Copelouzos group, have emerged since assumptions made for IPTO’s study, which had been put to public consultation.

The launch of the two new units over the next few years is expected to greatly contribute to the grid’s reliability.

Greece joining list of countries issuing green bonds, conditions entailed

Posted on by admin

Greece is preparing to join the growing list of countries issuing green bonds, the plan being to funnel proceeds into green projects at areas that have been affected by this summer’s extensive fires.

But the venture has its challenges and commitments. Any state or corporation accepting funds from investors for green bonds commits to specific environmental clauses.

Projects must be classified entirely eco-friendly, based on international criteria; not financed by recovery funds or the National Strategic Reference Framework (NSRF); and not included in any public investment programs that could widen the primary deficit.

Also, projects funded by green bonds need to have short-term completion dates of no more than two or three years.

At this stage, it remains unclear when the Greek government will move ahead with its first green bond issue.

Greek corporations, including TERNA, followed by the power utility PPC, have already issued green bonds.

PPC raised 500 million euros through a sustainability-linked bond in mid-July at an interest rate of 3.375 percent, one of the lowest ever borrowing rates secured by PPC, following a March SLB issue that provided 775 million euros.

In return, PPC has committed to a specified CO2 emission reduction of 40 percent by the end of 2022, compared to the corporation’s 2019 level, which represents a cut of 9.2 million tons, otherwise interest rate penalties will be imposed.

 

IPTO, Terna to co-develop second Greece-Italy subsea link

Posted on by admin

Greek power grid operator IPTO and Italy’s Terna have agreed to join forces for the construction of a second subsea cable grid interconnection to reinforce the market coupling of the two countries.

The chief executives of the two operators, IPTO’s Manos Manousakis and Terna’s Stefano Donnarumma held talks in Rome earlier this week, reaching a decision to co-develop the project through a joint venture, sources informed.

Officials in Greece and Italy consider this project, a 200-km cable offering a transmission capacity of between 500 and 1000 MW, will contribute to further RES growth in both markets, while also boosting activity in their target-model energy exchange markets.

The EU has just revised its climate change targets, increasing its RES energy-mix target for 2030 to 40 percent from the previous goal of 32 percent.

First stage of Greek-Italian grid link feasibility study completed

Posted on by admin

The final stage of a four-step feasibility study being conducted by power grid operator IPTO and Italy’s TERNA for a second subsea cable grid interconnection linking the Greek and Italian systems is expected to be ready at the end of this year, according to a Memorandum of Understanding signed by the two operators. The first of the four feasibility study stages has been completed.

IPTO and TERNA, according to the MoU, are examining the prospect of developing yet another grid interconnection, via a subsea cable, for additional capacity of between 500 and 1,000 MW.

This range is also stated in the operator’s ten-year network development plan covering 2022-2031 as the capacity boost required for the Greek-Italian grid interconnection.

This need, as pointed out in IPTO’s ten-year network development plan, was pointed out in ENTSO-E studies looking into requirements for a reinforced European Transmission Network.

The grid link between Greece and Italy needs to be reinforced to enable electricity price convergence between the two countries, according to this study.

The positive impact of a second grid interconnection for further coupling of the two markets was highlighted by energy minister Kostas Skrekas in an article for Greek Energy 2021, an extensive energy-sector publication prepared by the energypress team for a tenth year in succession.

According to Skrekas, target model Greek electricity prices have equaled Italian-zone price levels for about half the time. This period would have been more extensive, but the existing infrastructure’s capacity limits  prevented further price convergence, the minister noted.

The remainder of hours showed grid-link saturation, highlighting the need for a new line, he added.

Greek enterprises face April 27 date for hydrogen project proposals

Posted on by admin

Leading Greek energy players are gearing up to participate in a European Commission effort concerning the development of the continent’s first major investments in eco-friendly hydrogen production, a key aspect in Brussels’ decarbonization drive.

Interested parties face an April 27 deadline to submit proposals concerning a number of categories, including PCI-supported sustainable low-emission hydrogen production, the emphasis placed on RES-generated hydrogen.

The White Dragon project, as it has been dubbed, has brought Greece’s biggest industrial corporations closer, as they prepare to jointly bid for project categories Brussels will subsidize in the context of the Hydrogen Europe program.

The White Dragon project provides for investments of 2.5 billion euros in electrolytic hydrogen production by means of solar energy from photovoltaic parks with a capacity of 1.5 GW. They are planned for northern Greece’s west Macedonia region, a lignite-dependent economy.

Gas utility DEPA, gas grid operator DESFA, petroleum group Motor Oil, the Mytilineos group, Terna, Hellenic Petroleum ELPE, Polish company Solaris, as well as the Demokritos National Center for Scientific Research and the Center for Research and Technology Hellas (CERTH) are taking part.

The hydrogen to be produced will be used for district heating, fuel to be exported via the Trans Adriatic Pipeline, and as fuel for large vehicles such as lorries and buses.

 

IPTO seeking active role in Cyprus, Israel, Egypt grid interconnections

Posted on by admin

Power grid operator IPTO is seeking an active role in the grid interconnections to link Greece with Cyprus and Israel, as well as Egypt, the company’s chief executive Manos Manousakis told yesterday’s Power and Gas Supply Forum, an online event staged by energypress.

Responding to questions as to whether IPTO is considering to acquire an equity stake in these projects, Manousakis noted that the operator’s role is to ensure the interoperability of the Athens-Crete and Crete-Cyprus power grid interconnections, a commitment made by the Greek government back in October, 2019.

The European Commission, engaged in ongoing exchange with IPTO in an effort to understand the level of maturity of these grid interconnection projects and, primarily, the interoperability of its systems, has mentioned that Brussels would be interested in the equity involvement of a European TSO, Manousakis informed.

Other priorities at IPTO include upgrading and expanding Greece’s grid interconnections with neighboring countries, which would boost cash flow in the domestic energy market through electricity exports, the chief executive noted.

A tender for the development of the local segment of a second transboundary grid interconnection linking Greece and Bulgaria, from Nea Santa, northeastern Greece, to Bulgaria’s Maritsa area in the south, will be completed this year, Manousakis informed.

New interconnections with Albania and North Macedonia are also being examined at present, he noted.

In addition, IPTO is close to signing a cooperation agreement with Italian operator TERNA for the development of a second Greek-Italian grid interconnection.

Furthermore, plans for an upgrade of the Greek-Turkish interconnection, a project linking the European and Turkish transmission systems, are also maturing, the IPTO chief informed.

 

 

PPC granted license for 665 MW gas-fueled power station

Posted on by admin

A power utility PPC investment plan entailing the development of a 665-MW gas-fueled power station in the industrial zone of Komotini, northeastern Greece has been granted a license by RAE, the Regulatory Authority for Energy, adding to the list of licensed projects to serve as a bridge in the country’s energy transition until the renewable energy sector fully prevails.

The project linked to this latest license, given a 35-year duration, is scheduled to be launched in December, 2024.

RAE has now granted five licenses to an assortment of companies for such investment plans, though not all will necessarily be developed.

An 826-MW gas-fueled power station being developed by Mytilineos in Viotia, slightly northwest of Athens, set to be launched at the end of this year, is the most advanced of these investment plans.

The maturity levels vary for other projects in terms of environmental licensing and other procedural matters. These include a 665-MW unit planned by Terna, also in Komotini; an 826-MW project planned by Elpedison in Thessaloniki; and an 830-MW facility planned by the Copelouzos Group’s Damco in Alexandroupoli, northeastern Greece.

Also, the power utility is expected to reach a decision on converting its prospective Ptolemaida V lignite-fired power station into a gas-fueled facility.

Man Energy Solutions to support Terna for LNG truck-loading station

Posted on by admin

German company Man Energy Solutions has signed an agreement with construction company Terna to help with the development of a truck-loading station at gas grid operator DESFA’s LNG terminal on the islet Revythoussa, just off Athens.

Man Energy Solutions will take on the task of fully constructing infrastructure needed for the management of LNG supply, through trucks, to customers.

Commenting on the agreement, Thanassis Papaioannou, head of Man Energy Solutions’ Department of Machines and Electricity Units in Greece, noted: “We are very pleased to bring our knowhow in the LNG domain to [the] DESFA [terminal], joining forces with TERNA, one of the leading construction companies in the country. The actualization of this project will create new growth opportunities in areas where natural gas networks do not exist – that is, access to gas.”

Just days ago, it was also announced that DESFA has reached a finalized investment decision on the development of a small-scale LNG jetty at the Revythoussa terminal, as an addition to the facility’s LNG truck-loading station, contributing, amongst other things, to the emergence of LNG bunkering at the nearby Piraeus port.

PPC seeks IPTO support for EC lignite compensation request

Posted on by admin

Power utility PPC wants power grid operator IPTO to provide a statement declaring whether the power utility’s lignite-fired power stations, nowadays loss-incurring units as a result of elevated carbon emission right costs, are still necessary for the achievement of grid sufficiency, the utility’s objective being to gain support for a lignite compensation request submitted to the European Commission, not to immediately shut down its lignite units, sources have informed.

Brussels has been examining the PPC compensation request for months, initially as part of a package incorporating the European Commission’s lignite antitrust case against Greece, and more recently, following settlement of the latter, as a separate issue that has dragged on.

Throughout the entire period, officials in Greece have needed to respond to extensive Brussels questioning over PPC’s compensation request. Most recently, the European Commission is reported to have informed PPC, by email, that it would deliver a decision as soon as possible, once all information has been processed.

PPC, in its letter to IPTO, informs that it would be prepared to shut down the lignite units now if the operator considers them unnecessary for grid sufficiency as they are the cause of losses on a daily basis.

The power utility has planned a phaseout of its lignite facilities over the next three years, as part of the country’s decarbonization effort.

IPTO, in a grid-sufficiency study covering 2020 to 2030, conducted within the framework of the National Energy and Climate Plan, has stressed the period between 2021 and 2024 will be crucial as a result of PPC’s planned phaseout of lignite-fired power stations.

Subsequently, the grid’s sufficiency will depend on how soon three new gas-fueled power stations with a capacity totaling 2,150 MW – PPC’s Ptolemaida V, and units being developed by Mytilineos and TERNA – will be ready for launch, IPTO’s NECP-linked study noted.

Weather effects lend credibility to PPC lignite compensation bid

Posted on by admin

The impact of last week’s heavy snowfall around Greece, prompting power outages in various areas, northern parts of Athens being hardest hit, has added credibility to state-controlled power utility PPC’s compensation bid to the European Commission for its need to keep using lignite-fired power stations.

Had IPTO, the power grid operator, not ordered the grid entry of PPC’s lignite-fired power stations, nowadays a high-cost option, widespread blackouts amid the adverse weather conditions would have been inevitable, making matters far worse, including at economic and political levels.

IPTO officials have stressed the country continues to need PPC’s lignite-fired power stations until their production capacity is gradually replaced by cleaner gas-fueled power stations. These are: PPC’s Ptolemaida V; a unit being developed by the Mytilineos Group in Viotia, northwest of Athens; and Terna’s prospective unit in Komotini, northeastern Greece, still at the planning stage.

The period between 2021 and 2024 will be crucial for the country’s power generating sufficiency as a result of the planned withdrawal of existing lignite-fired power stations, a related IPTO study has shown. The system’s sufficiency will depend on how swiftly the aforementioned gas-fueled power stations, totaling 2,150 MW, can be up and running.

If the planned completion dates for these three projects are maintained then there will be no reason to delay the withdrawal schedule of lignite-fired power stations, sources pointed out. The grid entry of PPC’s Ptolemaida V and Mytilineos’ Viotia unit, without the Terna unit, would suffice to cover the capacity gap to be left by the withdrawn lignite units, these sources added.

However, any delays in the completion of the new power stations could prompt Greek officials to request more time from the European Commission for the withdrawal of lignite-fired units, the sources said.

RAE awaits Brussels response to Ariadne minority sale plan

Posted on by admin

RAE, the Regulatory Authority of Energy, is awaiting a response from the European Commission before approving a plan by power grid operator IPTO to sell up to a 40 percent stake in its subsidiary Ariadne Interconnection, established specifically for the development of the Crete-Athens interconnection.

RAE has consulted Brussels as the authority wants clarification on what the corporate structure of parent company IPTO and its subsidiary permits, based on EU law.

The Crete-Athens grid link was originally planned as a segment of EuroAsia, a wider interconnection plan of PCI status to link the Greek, Cypriot and Israeli electricity grids, with EuroAsia, a consortium of Cypriot interests, at the helm. Eventually, IPTO withdrew the Crete-Athens section for its development as a national project.

Ariadne Interconnection’s role will be strictly limited to the construction of the Crete-Athens interconnection, a concession agreement between IPTO and its subsidiary Ariadne Interconnection has specified. Once completed, IPTO will assume the project’s management.

Last October, IPTO forwarded a detailed plan to RAE concerning the sale of a minority stake in Ariadne Interconnection.

China’s SGCC, a strategic partner of IPTO holding a 24 percent stake, informed, some time ago, that it would be interested in acquiring a 20 percent stake of Ariadne Interconnection. European operators such as Italy’s Terna and Belgium’s Elia, as well as major investment groups, have also expressed interest.

The acquisition by investors of a minority stake in Ariadne Interconnection is linked to the development of major-scale RES projects on Crete.

IPTO, Terna plan Greek-Italian link boost of up to 1,000 MW

Posted on by admin

Power grid operator IPTO is taking initiatives to upgrade Greece’s interconnections with neighboring countries, acknowledging transboundary grid link insufficiencies are having a negative impact whose consequences include market functional disorders and higher electricity prices.

The operator has formed working groups with all of Greece’s neighboring countries to examine the prospect of constructing or reinforcing existing interconnections.

These associations include cooperation with Italian operator Terna. The two sides, prepared to consider both an upgrade of the existing system or the development of a new one, estimate that the Greek-Italian grid interconnection requires a capacity increase of between 500 and 1,000 MW.

According to sources, IPTO and Terna have agreed to proceed with related studies for an optimal solution as soon as possible. The operators intend to reach a decision within the next few months. Any selection will need to be approved by the Greek and Italian regulatory authorities of energy.

IPTO intends to include this project in its ten-year development plan covering 2022 to 2031, expected to be presented at the end of the year.

The existing Greek-Italian electricity grid interconnection, a 163km subsea cable with a 500-MW capacity in operation since 2002, will be used to facilitate the target model’s next stage, market coupling, beginning on December 15 with the aim of harmonizing the energy markets of the two countries.

ENTSO-E, the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Electricity, has pointed out that a Greek-Italian grid interconnection boost will be needed for an effective bridging of prices between the two countries.

IPTO awaiting approval of 20% Ariadne sale for €40m minimum

Posted on by admin

Power grid operator IPTO’s needed approval from RAE, the Regulatory Authority for Energy, of its sale plan offering a 20 percent stake in subsidiary firm Ariadne Interconnection, tasked with the development of the Crete-Athens grid interconnection, is now in the hands of the authority, sources informed.

A condition setting a minimum sale price of 40 million euros, or 20 percent of the nominal value of Ariadne’s equity capital, totaling 200 million euros, has been included in the plan, the sources added.

It also includes criteria that will need to be met by prospective bidders, as well as the tender’s steps all the way to the final round, when qualifiers will be given access to the sale’s video data room.

The VDR will offer candidates financial, technical and legal details concerning the Crete-Athens grid interconnection, a project budgeted at one billion euros and slated for completion within 2023.

IPTO has already secured a 400 million-euro loan from Eurobank, an additional 200 million euros will stem from own capital, while the other 40 percent is expected to be provided in the form of EU subsidies, now close to approval.

China’s SGCC, IPTO’s strategic partner with a 24 percent stake, as well as European operators, among them Italy’s Terna and Belgium’s Elia, have all expressed interest ahead of the Ariadne Interconnection tender.

Importantly, IPTO is still awaiting RAE’s approval of WACC levels for the Cretan interconnection project – permitted revenue (2018-2021) and required revenue (2019-2021).

Projects categorized as projects of major significance are legally entitled to additional returns beyond the asset-based yield.

DEPA Comm VDR open; 5-year stay for Infrastructure buyer

Posted on by admin

The video data room for the privatization procedure of DEPA Commercial, one of two new gas utility DEPA entities placed for sale, is now open to prospective bidders, but initial information made available is limited to non-financial details.

Financial details on DEPA Commercial will be made available as a second step to all consultants representing the potential buyers, while a third and final stage will follow to conditionally offer bidders confidential information in person at the DEPA headquarters.

As previously reported, the second-round, binding-bids deadline for the DEPA Commercial sale, offering investors a 65 percent stake, has been extended to March, 2021.

The field of second-round qualifiers is comprised of two partnerships, Hellenic Petroleum (ELPE) with Edison and power utility PPC with Motor Oil Hellas, plus Mytilineos, TERNA, the Copelouzos group, Shell, and the Swiss-based MET Group.

As for DEPA Infrastructure, the other new DEPA entity up for sale, energy minister Costis Hatzidakis is preparing a legislative revision that will require the winning bidder to retain its company shares for a period of at least five years.

This condition will also apply for the DEPA Infrastructure subsidiaries EDA Attiki, EDA Thess and DEDA, the gas distributors covering the wider Athens area, Thessaloniki-Thessaly and rest of Greece, respectively. DEPA fully owns DEDA and EDA Attiki and holds a 51 percent stake in EDA Thess.

The DEPA Infrastructure binding-bids deadline has also been extended to the end of February, 2021. Italgas, EPH, First State Investments, KKR, Macquarie and Sino-CEEF have qualified for the final round.

 

Business plan, better results, new activities in DEPA Commercial VDR

Posted on by admin

The virtual data room for a forthcoming privatization to offer a 65 percent stake in DEPA Commercial, an offshoot of gas utility DEPA, expected to be opened for potential buyers to assess by the end of this week, will present a business plan, improved financial figures at DEPA, new company activities envisaged, as well as DEPA’s outlook on the course of the country’s natural gas market and the company’s position within it.

According to privatization fund TAIPED’s revised Asset Development Plan, participants will submit binding bids in December.

The field of first-round entries, comprising two consortiums and five companies, will have roughly three months to prepare binding bids, according to the schedule.

Hellenic Petroleum ELPE and Italy’s Edison are one of the privatization’s two participating consortiums, the other formed by power utility PPC and Motor Oil Hellas. The five individual participants are: Mytilineos, TERNA, Copelouzos group, Shell and the Swiss-based MET group.

New partnerships could be established by the field of participants as long as they do not affect the sale’s competition standards and have been approved by TAIPED.

The sale of DEPA Commercial is a major attraction for potential buyers as it offers a big slice of the wholesale and retail markets, including gas supplier Fysiko Aerio Attikis, a subsidiary covering the wider Athens area. Fysiko Aerio Attikis already serves close to 400,000 households and 10,000 businesses.

Metka, Terna winning bidders for PPC Renewables 15-MW Kozani units

Posted on by admin

PPC Renewables has reached decisions to award two development contracts for respective 15-MW solar parks in the Kozani area, northern Greece, to Metka, a member of the Mytilineos group, and Terna, following two tenders, nearing finalization within the next few days, energypress sources have informed.

The imminent signing of these development contracts will signal the first steps in the development, by PPC Renewables, of a wider 230-MW solar energy complex, Greece’s biggest to date and one of Europe’s largest.

Construction work for the two 15-MW solar parks is expected to commence this coming summer, PPC Renewables anticipates.

The Kozani project will be spread across lignite mine locations operated by PPC Renewables’ parent company PPC, the power utility.

The 15-MW solar park to be developed by Metka will be equipped with its own sub-station and stationary mounts holding solar panels in a fixed position. This project’s total cost is estimated at just under 10 million euros.

The other 15-MW solar park project, to be constructed by Terna, will also be equipped with its own sub-station but, instead of fixed-position panels, will feature solar trackers, orienting panels toward the sun. This project will cost a total of approximately 11.5 million euros.

A tender for the Kozani project’s biggest segment, a 200-MW solar park, is still in progress. The deadline for bids has been slightly extended to June 11. Some 30 companies, Greek and foreign, have expressed major interest. Most are expected to submit bids.

PPC Renewables expects to have doubled its current installed RES capacity by the second half of 2021, up to 300 MW, according to the company’s chief executive Konstantinos Mavros.

A 600-MW installed capacity target has been set for the end of 2022. Looking further ahead, PPC Renewables is striving for a 1.5-GW total five years from now.

Work on Crete-Athens grid link nears launch after approvals

Posted on by admin

The Court of Auditors has approved contracts offered to winning bidders for installation of the Crete-Athens grid interconnection’s four cable segments, enabling the signing of contracts for the one billion-euro project’s biggest stage, budgeted at 615 million euros, probably within the month, energypress sources have informed. Work will then be able to commence.

Prysmian, Nexans and Hellenic Cables-NKT were awarded contracts for the project’s four cable segments. Prysmian secured two of these four contracts.

On another front, the Court of Auditors is expected to approve a contract for the project’s other key stage, the design, supply and installation of two converters and a substation, in June, according to sources.

Siemens – Terna, a member of the GEK TERNA group, submitted an improved bid of 370 million euros late last month to be awarded this contract by power grid operator IPTO’s fully-owned subsidiary Ariadne Interconnection, the project promoter.

The Court of Auditors’ approval of contracts for the project’s four cable segments follows a recent decision by the environment and energy ministry endorsing the 1,000-MW project’s environmental terms.

EU funding for the project through the NSRF (2014 – 2020) is expected to be approved within the next week to ten days, according to reliable sources. This would subsequently also offer IPTO access to bank financing.

Siemens-Terna awarded converter stations contract for Crete-Athens link

Posted on by admin

Power grid operator IPTO’s fully-owned subsidiary Ariadne
Interconnection has successfully completed a tender process for the Converter Stations of the Crete-Athens Interconnection, awarding the contract to Siemens – Terna, a member of the GEK TERNA group, ADMIE (IPTO) Holding has announced. 

After the submission of an improved bid on March 26, the contract price was set at 370 million euros, of which 358.6 million euros concern the construction of the converter stations. The remaining 11.4 million euros concern maintenance of these stations.

The contract calls for a 36-month implementation period and will be signed after approval by the Court of Auditors.

The project will be included in the list of the Operational Program “Competitiveness, Entrepreneurship and Innovation” of the NSRF 2014 – 2020.

Τhe tendering procedure for the design, supply and installation of two Converters and a Substation for the DC Electrical Interconnection between Crete and Athens was launched on May 24, 2019.

The tender attracted the interest of world leaders in the industry and on November 1, 2019 the GE-Nari-Mytilineos and Siemens-Terna consortiums submitted binding offers.

The evaluation of the offers submitted by the consortiums, both of which possess strong technical backgrounds and specialized experience in similar projects abroad, required more than four months due to the project’s elevated technical demands. 

The technical evaluation was completed on March 13 and the Siemens-Terna consortium’s offer qualified, taking into account all relevant issues related to the interconnection.

Commenting on the tender, the IPTO group’s CEO Manos Manousakis noted: “During these challenging times, the tender process for our
flagship project, amounting to 1 billion euros, was successfully completed without problems.
IPTO will continue to focus all its efforts in order to protect the timely implementation of the project and ensure the safe and reliable power supply of Crete through the mainland system by 2023. Apart from the economic benefits of the interconnection of Crete for all Greek consumers, through the decline of Public Service Obligations (PSO), the implementation of this
project paves the way for accelerated RES integration on the island based on the principles of sustainable development.”

Big RES projects on islands to be given IPTO cable access

Posted on by admin

Investors behind major-scale RES project plans for non-interconnected islands and island complexes, previously granted licenses incorporating the installation of cable interconnections, will now be able to develop their renewable energy facilities and reserve capacities through interconnection infrastructure developed by power grid operator IPTO.

The energy ministry intends to attach a related amendment to a draft bill concerning environmental permits.

Licenses granted to investors in the past for major-scale wind energy farms on non-interconnected islands and island complexes expected investors to install related cable infrastructure for energy distribution.

Such licenses have been granted to the Copelouzos group and Terna for projects on Crete and Iberdrola Rokas for investment plans in the North Aegean.

The new legal framework being prepared by the ministry promises to offer investors greater flexibility as development of interconnection infrastructure will no longer be set as a condition for related RES project licenses.

Instead, investors will be able to reserve capacities through cable interconnections being developed by IPTO. However, investors will need to contribute to the cost of this infrastructure in accordance with their reserved share of the overall capacity.

Alexandroupoli FSRU tender draws 3 bids, all by key players

Posted on by admin

A tender staged by Gastrade for the construction of a pipeline and related projects needed to link the prospective Alexandroupoli FSRU, in Greece’s northeast, with the national gas grid, attracted bids from three companies, all major players at an international level, on the deadline day last Friday.

Experienced Italian firm Saipem teamed up with Greece’s Terna for one of the three bids, while two Dutch bidders, Boskalis and Van Oord, submitted the other two offers.

Gastrade officials will appraise the technical aspects of the offers before moving on to the financial side.

Meanwhile, the second round of a tender for the project’s FSRU is expected to be announced within the next few days, inviting first-round participants to submit binding offers. Over ten bidders, experienced players from Greece and abroad, submitted first-round bids for the FSRU.

The deadline of an ongoing market test for binding offers concerning the FSRU’s capacity reservations, crucial for the project’s final investment decision, expires in a few days’ time.

Besides the LNG quantities involved, the duration of capacity reservation requests will also be a pivotal factor for the project’s sustainability.

Gastrade officials, basing their judgement on the procedure’s developments until now, are confident of a favorable market test outcome that will lead to the project’s actualization.

Crete link environmental terms, needed for contracts, soon

Posted on by admin

The energy ministry will publish the environmental terms for Crete’s major-scale grid interconnection with Athens, needed for project contracts, within the first ten days or March, power grid operator IPTO, the project’s promoter, anticipates.

The delivery of these terms will enable the winning bidders for the project’s cable installations, Prysmian, Nexans and Hellenic Cables – NKT, to sign project contracts with the operator, probably two to three weeks later, somewhere between late March and early April.

Meanwhile, appraisals of offers submitted by bidders for project converter stations are believed to be nearing completion. Two consortiums, Terna-Siemens and Mytilineos-General Electric-Nari have submitted offers to the tender for converter stations.

Construction of the major-scale grid interconnection, from Crete to Athens, will be able to commence once the cable and converter station contracts have been signed.

IPTO insists the project will be fully operational in 2023.

Work on Crete’s small-scale grid interconnection with the mainland, from Crete to the southern Peloponnese, is progressing as scheduled, IPTO has informed.

The installation of this segment’s submarine cables, awarded to Prysmian and Hellenic Cables, is scheduled to be completed around November, according to IPTO’s schedule.

This segment involves deep-sea cable installation work at more than 1,000 meters below sea level, an effort said to be unprecedented anywhere in the world.

Additional IPTO stake seen offered within next three months

Posted on by admin

The government, gearing up for a series of energy sector privatizations, plans to hasten the sale of an additional yet unspecified stake in power grid operator IPTO. The procedure could now be launched within the next three months.

Investor interest in IPTO has risen as the operator’s asset value is projected to increase sharply over the next decade.

The Greek State currently controls a 51 percent share of IPTO, directly and indirectly. Late in 2019, State Grid Corp of China (SGCC), the buyer of a 24 percent stake in IPTO and holder of priority rights should any additional stake be offered, expressed an interest to boost its stake in the operator and also acquire a 20 percent stake in subsidiary firm Ariadne Interconnector, project promoter of the Crete-Athens electricity grid interconnection, a project budgeted at one billion euros.

The size of the additional IPTO stake to be placed for sale remains unclear, but, without a doubt, SGCC’s decision on whether or not to exercise its priority right will be influential.

Italy’s Terna, holding a 30 percent stake in CDP Reti, an Italian holding company, is also believed to be interested in the upcoming IPTO sale. SGCC would also be involved here as the Chinese company holds a 35 percent stake in CDP Reti. French operator RTE and a variety of funds are also considered believed to be considering the IPTO sale.

IPTO’s assets are seen rising from a present level of 1.5 billion euros to five billion euros over the next ten years as a result of the development of major grid interconnection projects to link the country’s Dodecanese and North Aegean Islands with the mainland.

Greece’s energy-sector privatizations will not be limited to gas utility DEPA’s two new entities, DEPA Infrastructure and DEPA Trade, both underway, nor will there be a gap until the next sale, distribution network operator DEDDIE/HEDNO, scheduled for September, energy ministry officials have informed. The Hellenic Petroleum ELPE sale will be deferred.

 

One of three Crete link bidding teams wants time or will exit

Posted on by admin

ABB, the world’s biggest developer of power grid interconnection projects, has requested a further deadline extension greater than the one-month periods of additional time already granted twice for a tender concerning the Crete-Athens grid interconnection project’s engineering, procurement and construction of two converter stations and a GIS substation, energypress sources have informed. The tender’s current deadline is set to expire on October 31.

Both the Greek government and power grid operator IPTO appear determined not to accept any further deadline extension requests as this, they believe, would increase the risk of a project delay and, consequently, energy sufficiency issues on Crete.

Outdated, high-polluting power stations still operating on Crete soon need to be withdrawn.

ABB, which has joined forces with Greek maritime infrastructure construction and maintenance group Archirodon for the Cretan project’s tender, has cited the complexity of the project for the additional time the company appears to need. If a sizable extension is not granted, then ABB and project partner Archirodon will most likely withdraw from the tender, it is believed.

On the contrary, two other partnerships established for the tender, according to reliable sources, are preparing to submit their offers. Siemens is believed to have joined forces with Greek construction company TERNA and General Electric is working with Greece’s Mytilineos, according to sources.

The grid interconnection project’s development faces a tight schedule. IPTO chief executive Manos Manousakis told a recent conference the project will be launched early 2023, not at the end of 2022, as was previously believed.

PCI hopes for underground gas storage boosted by late effort

Posted on by admin

NEWS UPDATE: 

Greek energy ministry officials have made a successful last-ditch effort ahead of this Sunday’s elections that boosts the country’s chances of keeping on the EU’s PCI list an underground gas storage facility in the offshore South Kavala region, planned through the development of a depleted natural gas field, energypress sources have informed.

An FSRU in Alexandroupoli, northeastern Greece, will also be on the PCI list, enabling favorable funding terms, the sources added.

Prior to this latest development, energy ministry officials assured that problems concerning the South Kavala project’s place on the PCI list would be overcome, while admitting the project had been negatively appraised by Brussels.

Earlier today, energypress reported: 

A project entailing the development of a depleted natural gas field in northern Greece’s offshore South Kavala region as an underground gas storage facility appears likely to be removed from the European Union’s PCI list, a status enabling favorable funding.

Delays and the country’s early elections appear to have taken their toll and are believed to be key reasons behind the project’s likely removal from the PCI list.

The underground gas storage facility has been negatively reviewed by EU authorities amid procedures leading to the determination of a new and revised PCI catalogue for 2020-2021, energypress sources have informed.

Not all hope has been lost. Final decisions by EU authorities will be reached in October, which gives Greek officials some time to present their case in favor of the project’s PCI-list inclusion.

The asset’s ownership, along with the responsibility for its utilization, have been transferred to the privatization fund TAIPED, which has significantly delayed related initiatives as it obviously does not consider the project to be a top-priority issue.

The project’s budget is estimated at between 300 and 400 million euros, while its storage capacity could end up being anywhere between 360 and 720 million cubic meters, as much as 10 percent of the country’s annual natural gas consumption.

France’s Engie, as well as Terna and Energean, have formed a consortium to bid for the project whenever a tender is staged.