World Environment Day: Renewable energy and savings in response to the environmental crisis

THE World Environment Day celebrated every year on June 5 addresses this year an invitation to wake up and act on a global scale for the protection and restoration of our planet. The group PPC fully in line with this goal, it continues to act responsibly and consistently to maintain and enhance healthy ecosystems in all its areas of influence. Intensifies investments in Renewable Energy Sources, strengthens the installed wind and photovoltaic power, accelerates investments in networks for the reception of new RES and maintains a leading role in the development of electricity. At the same time, it continues to take substantial initiatives to reduce the environmental footprint in all its activities, with particular emphasis on energy savings and the regeneration and restoration of areas.

It invests in clean and affordable energy for everyone

The environmental crisis has only one answer: to accelerate the green transition through the enhancement of Renewable Energy Sources. PPC is fully in line with the EU’s goal of accelerating the energy transition with maximum social participation and environmental protection. The current energy crisis has made it necessary to accelerate energy planning and has intensified the further intensification of investments in the implementation of RES projects so that our country can recover faster from fossil fuels and imported crises.

• The amount of the Group’s investments in RES increased by 12.7% in the first quarter of 2022, while it has already secured in terms of licensing the implementation of RES projects of 4GW power, which represents 80% of the power it has set as a goal until 2026 It is already constructing 355MW, of which approximately 290MW is expected to be completed by 2022, bringing the total installed capacity to 489MW by the end of the year.

• The gradual withdrawal of lignite plants will result in a complete change in the image of PPC, reducing the amount of CO2 it emits, from 20 million tons in 2019, to about 5 million tons in 2024.

Emerges as an “energy consultant” to save energy and reduce the environmental footprint

PPC, aiming at the immediate, continuous and effective information and service of its customers, redefines its role from energy provider and producer to an energy consultant, located next to each consumer under the new PPC myEnergy platform.
Through PPC myEnergy, consumers are provided with complete energy saving solutions while at the same time a transparent framework is learned for learning basic management points and understanding consumption with tips and smart saving tools as well as ways to enhance efficiency and sustainability. Consumers can be constantly informed, discovering personalized solutions to all the critical energy issues that concern them, especially at a time when the interest in the rational use of energy is growing. Energy saving offers benefits for everyone: consumers and the environment.

Successfully continues the redesign and regeneration of areas

At the Lignite Center of Western Macedonia, PPC has been implementing extensive land rehabilitation programs for a number of decades. To date, about 40,000 acres have been restored, of which more than 20,000 acres are wooded areas with forest species. The tree plantings that have taken place so far in the area also perform other environmental services such as carbon dioxide capture, biodiversity protection, wildlife protection and forest recreation. The establishment and configuration of a model amusement park on the verge of rehabilitation of PPC mines is an important ecological and social contribution in the region. Through the research project COFORMIT (COntribution FORest MITigation), which was implemented in the last 4 years in the restored areas of LKDM, by PPC, the Democritus University of Thrace and the company ena OE, the carbon reserves were calculated, the contribution of in the reduction of inhalable suspended particles and in the reduction of the environmental footprint of the mines.

It integrates the environmental dimension in the whole range of its actions

For the second consecutive year, it participated on April 22, in World Earth Day, electrifying 4,400,000 households for 24 hours, with energy exclusively from renewable sources, with the free availability of the GreenPass service. In this way, carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from domestic use were reduced by 16,000 tonnes in a single day.

• Aims to create 1,000 electric car charging stations in the medium and 10,000 in the long run. Today it has the most geographically extensive network of publicly accessible charging points with the electricity in the chargers of the PPC Blue network coming exclusively from RES.

• Takes an active role in rebuilding the areas affected by last summer’s fires. As a Rehabilitation and Reforestation Contractor, he completed the execution of anti-corrosion and anti-flood interventions in an area of ​​34,866 acres in North Evia. In addition, it responded to the request of local agencies for the restoration of the areas of Ancient Olympia by financing the planting of 80,000 new olive saplings, their transport and delivery to the home communities.

• Participates in important initiatives (dynamic participation in the GR-eco Islands initiative, for the transformation of the island of Halki into a green economy model, adoption of beaches in Rafina and Artemida through Project Paralies, participation in the three-day ECOFest festival dedicated to sustainable development and green cities etc.).

• Supports actions for sustainable mobility by demonstrating in practice its commitment to a better and greener future. It supported events such as the PPC International Cycling Tour of Greece, the Cycling Tour of Athens and implemented original actions such as the PPC e-bike Festival, the first electric bicycle festival in Greece. The PPC e-bike Festival has been hosted in a total of 7 cities until today, with the most recent station being Syntagma Square on Sunday, May 29th. Thousands of visitors were introduced to the benefits of sustainable mobility and were informed about energy solutions and ways to reduce the energy footprint of their household or business.

With RES as an ally and guided by the long-term contribution to the protection of the environment, the fight against climate change and its effects, PPC lays the foundations for a safe and sustainable energy transition. Our commitment is a world that energy will not leave its mark on the planet!