The Hellenic Society of Energy Economy organized the 5th Energy Transition Symposium, which took place from September 30 to October 2, 2020 at Theoxenia Palace Hotel in Athens.
The Symposium had a hybrid form, with limited physical presence and extensive online participation, while its attendance through a specific platform was free for everyone.
The Symposium focused on all parameters related to the Energy Transition, including the crucial issue of de-lignification both pan-European and in our country, the launch of the European Target Model, developments regarding hydrocarbon exploration in the Southeastern Mediterranean, infrastructure and networks, the gas market in Greece, the promotion of electricity, the role of hydrogen and of course the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the energy sector. For another year, the Symposium served as an international platform for the promotion of a constructive and substantive dialogue on all critical energy issues.
Through 20 sessions with different topics, over 120 speakers, 20 presentations of scientific articles, and over 8,000 participants, the Symposium maintained its international, specialized, academic and educational character, providing the online participants with a detailed analysis of the topics under discussion.
Energy experts, senior executives, officials and academics from institutions, organizations, agencies and companies inside and outside Greece had the opportunity to present their positions and discuss the issues facing the industry, thus offering the public a comprehensive picture of the developments, opportunities and challenges that are emerging today in the energy sector both at Greek and international level.
The Symposium was opened by the President of the UAE, Mr. Spyros Papaefthymiou, emphasizing that the coronavirus crisis in combination with the new initiatives of the EU. for a green Energy Transition act as an accelerator to an economy based on sustainable development. This is both a challenge and an opportunity for all energy market players, as the focus is now on new technologies and enhanced research.
Some of the key points of the discussions that are worth mentioning are the following:
The new electricity markets under the Target Model will start operating in November 2020. In this context, the new structure of the Greek Energy Exchange and its interaction with IPTO and the Energy Regulatory Authority was presented. The Target Model monitoring mechanism will be called “Odyssey”, and will include indicators for concentration in the wholesale and retail market, performance indicators per participant, as well as a mechanism for imposing fines.
During the discussion on the transition to new, environmentally friendly and citizen-friendly forms of energy, the Deputy Minister of Infrastructure and Transport, Ioannis Kefalogiannis, presented the draft law of the Ministry of Infrastructure & Transport on Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans (SVAK) and Microkinetic , which will give the opportunity to the local authorities to implement projects related to the improvement of road safety, the facilitation of electric mobility, the development of intelligent transportation systems as well as the development of micro-mobility.
In addition, the suitable ground for attracting new RES investments created by the Greek government was discussed in detail, as well as the country’s opportunity to significantly increase the share of RES penetration. It emerged from the discussion that it is crucial to modernize the regulatory framework to reduce licensing time due to bureaucratic entanglements. Also, pending the detailed Master Plan for de-lignification, it was stressed that Greece now has the potential to become an important energy hub in Southeast Europe, through the further strengthening of hydrocarbon exploration.
The need to activate investments through Greek and foreign financing was also noted. One such example was the NESOI European Islands Facility project, a project funded by Horizon 2020 in which the UAE participates as a partner. NESOI aims to activate energy investments, over 100 million euros, in the EU islands in order to promote energy transition, reduce energy costs and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
The need for the country to be more active in the field of exploration and exploitation of potential hydrocarbon deposits for reasons of geopolitical stability and geostrategic importance was stressed. Regarding the gas market, the speakers stressed that natural gas will certainly play an important role as a transitional fuel. The pandemic may have led to a drop in international demand, but this fuel will continue to play a significant role in the coming decades. At this time the trend is positive for the increase of the share of natural gas in the energy market, while the supply tends to increase in all parts of the world through the abundant LNG.
The importance of the implemented investments by IPTO was highlighted, such as the double interconnection of mainland Greece with Crete and the expected modifications of the networks that concern the interconnection of the other island areas but also the modernization and digitization of the existing network.
SPYROPOULOS SA as a Silver Sponsor successfully participated in the Symposium and was represented by the General Manager Mr. Tomaras Konstantinos.
From the state side, the government representatives were honored by the government representatives: Adonis Georgiadis, Minister of Development and Investment, Ioannis Kefalogiannis, Deputy Minister of Infrastructure and Transport, Costas Frangogiannis, Deputy Minister of Finance, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Environment and Water, RIS, the representatives of the opposition, Socrates Famellos, head of energy and MP of SYRIZA and George Arvanitidis, head of energy and MP of KINAL, but also the Ambassador of Italy to Greece Patrickia, France Patrizia of France Maisonnave, as well as the Ambassador of Spain to Greece, Enrique Viguera Rubio.
The panel of speakers was attended by Giannis Giarentis, President and CEO of DAPEEP, Vassilis Spiliotopoulos CEO of Greece and Cyprus of Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy SA, Panagiotis Papastamatiou Director of ENTEKA & President of EE Facilitation, Enterprise Greece and Giannis Panagis President of POSPIEF.
Watch the presentation of Mr. Tomaras during the 2nd day of the Symposium:
Questions and answers during the Symposium. The position of Mr. Tomaras:
