Project Coordinator and Principal Researcher: Dr Yannis Maniatis
Duration: September 2021 - August 2022
Overview
The European Union is shifting towards a climate-neutral economy in 2050 with relevant interventions in the following sectors: decarbonisation of the energy sector that causes 75 percent of gaseous pollutants, renovation of buildings that account for 40 percent of energy consumption, innovations in the European industry that uses only 12 percent recycled materials, and cleaner transportation that causes 25 percent of emissions. These goals are achievable since the EU managed during 1990-2018 to reduce emissions by 23 percent and at the same time to increase European GDP by 61 percent. The European Green Deal is fully compatible with the global Sustainable Development Goals.
Greece’s total energy dependence is 74 percent, while the EU average is 54 percent. Respectively, the country is 100 percent dependent on hydrocarbons, which constitute 65 percent of the final national energy consumption. The national economy spends every year on oil and gas imports around € 5.5 billion. More specifically, 60 percent of national oil consumption comes from transport and 30 percent from domestic consumption for heating purposes (the fourth highest level among to the members of the International Energy Organisation).
The strengthening of renewable energy sources, electrification, de-lignification, and island electricity interconnections are part of the national energy strategy which has been formed by incorporating the principles of the European Energy Union. Yet, Greece has experienced a long financial crisis that has affected its transition to a sustainable model of energy use and production. When an ineffective social protection system coincides with high unemployment rates, a national energy strategy should include measures to tackle and combat energy poverty.
This study aims at providing a new approach to Greece’s energy industry. It is guided by the following objectives:
- To examine the Greek contribution to the prevention of the climate crisis in the framework of the European Green Deal.
- To describe the promise of energy democracy and the problem of energy poverty in Greece.
- To analyse and compare different energy communities in the country.
Project Outputs
- The Policy Brief is available here.
- Read the Research Paper of the project, which was published as part of the GreeSE working paper series, GreeSE Paper No.181.
Research Team
Project Coordinator and Principal Researcher: Dr Yannis Maniatis, Associate Professor, University of Piraeus; former Minister of Environment, Energy & Climate Change