‘Red alert’ in the government for the energy security of the country

By Dimitris Gatsiou

The government is on full alert in order to face the twin challenge on the energy front, related to the price rally, but also the country’s sufficiency, in view of a winter of great doubts and a highly fluid environment.

In another meeting, which took place in the Maximos Palace, under the Prime Minister, all the possible scenarios were put on the carpet, at a time when the government’s constant signal to households and businesses remains that of continuous support for as long as the… Energy allies are on the horizon crisis.

Energy security remains for our country and for the whole of Europe a key priority, Russia’s move to shut down “Nord Stream 1” for ten days and for planned maintenance work, has sparked strong concerns in the member states of the European Union , while… a ray of light for a “common European response to a common European problem” is the announcement by the Commissioner for Economy, Paolo Gentiloni, that Brussels is drawing up and will present next week a new plan to deal with the energy crisis even in the face of the scenario complete stoppage of natural gas flow from the Moscow side.

Alert in… deep red

“We have been preparing for a long time and are taking every possible measure to deal with even the most extreme scenario”, is the message sent by government officials, in the wake of the wide-ranging meeting of Megaros Maximos, with Mr. Mitsotakis being briefed by the Energy Management Committee Crises for the alternative scenarios in the event of a reduced supply or even a complete interruption of Russian natural gas to Europe in the fall and winter, in order to ensure the energy sufficiency of the country.

The signal, with the end of this meeting, is that our country is in a more favorable position compared to other member states of the European Union, with the…alarm, however, remaining in…deep red and requiring constant vigilance.

“Our national policies are such as to create an environment of energy stability. The community possibilities, which we have sought from the first moment, will come to be added to the national ones. However, we all need to change our energy culture, contributing in practice to limiting of wasted energy”, noted the government representative, Yiannis Oikonomou, from the journalists’ briefing room. In the context of energy security:

– Athens is ready to transport liquefied natural gas (LNG) with two ships at the same time to the Revythoussa facilities.

– Also at the forefront is the supply of more LNG by reverse flow through the TAP pipeline from Italy, with which processes are already in place to store a large amount.

– The use of more diesel and lignite for electricity production will play a central role. The five gas-fired power plants are ready to run on diesel. At the same time, PPC’s available lignite units continue to operate at their current production capacity and show no shortages, while in September the new lignite unit, Ptolemaida 5, will start operating.