The green transition requires a doubling of investments in the distribution network from 500 million to 1 billion euros a year to increase the capacity but also to digitize the operations of the Greek network, stated the president and CEO of PPC Giorgos Stassis in a press conference today as part of the Eurelectric conference (representing the European electricity industry) taking place in Athens.

At the European level, according to a Eurelectric study presented today at the conference, an increase in investments in networks is required, from 33 billion euros on average to 67 billion euros per year from 2025 to 2050,

As Mr. Stassis, who has been elected vice-president of Eurelectric, pointed out, digitization is also necessary to speed up the restoration of electricity in areas affected by severe weather phenomena that have multiplied in recent years.

The chairman of Eurelectric and the managing director of the German e.on Leonhard Birnbaum appeared reassuring about the possibility of a new crisis in the natural gas market, pointing out that Europe’s warehouses (due to the previous mild winter) have high reserves and there will be no difficulty for their filling in view of the next winter. This does not mean that there can be fluctuations in prices.

In response to a question about the negative electricity prices that have been observed more and more often lately in the European markets – and in Greece – Mr. Birnbaum emphasized that it is a result of the increased penetration of photovoltaics, so prices will continue to collapse in the midday hours. For his part, Mr. Stassis emphasized that we should look at the overall picture, which, in addition to the negative values, also includes the much higher values ​​in other time periods of the 24-hour period. A fact that, as he noted, makes investments in RES and thermal units with the flexibility to cover the gaps in production created when RES disappear, as well as energy storage, necessary as well as economically viable.

Both also referred to the problems created by the lack of labor force. As indicated by Mr. Stassis, workers from third countries are employed in the development projects of the group’s telecommunications network.