Energy Minister: Greece can cope with a possible cessation of gas supplies from Russia

Environment and Energy Minister Kostas Skrekas said on Monday that Greece can handle a possible cut in natural gas supplies from Russia.

He stressed that Greece “faces one of the lowest risks in Europe in terms of supply adequacy, subject to the availability of liquefied natural gas (LNG).” However, “we are systematically preparing to ensure the country’s energy supply, considering even the most unfavorable scenarios.”

Skrekas made the announcement as he chaired an emergency meeting of a crisis management team on Monday to assess whether Greece’s natural gas reserves are adequate if Russia cuts off supplies. He confirmed that Greece is able to deal effectively with the potential reduction in natural gas supplies from Russia.

Greece launched its energy independence plan a year ago by building or starting construction of several gas terminals. In May 2022 Prime Minister Kariakos Mitsotakis presented the construction terminal in Alexandroupoli. Its capacity will be 5.5 billion cubic meters. m per year, the terminal must earn at the end of 2023. The final investment decision has been made, the terminal’s capacity is already half contracted. The received gas will be distributed to the markets of Greece, Romania, Bulgaria, Moldova, Ukraine, Serbia, North Macedonia.

In Greece one LNG-Revithoussa terminal is already in operation company DESFA, 45 km from Athens. In the past 2021, it received 2.4 billion cubic meters. m of gas. The project for the construction of a new one received state support in the amount of 167 million euros.

In 2023, according to Deputy Managing Director and Chief Financial Officer Petros Tsannetakis, there will be construction started floating terminal in Corinth. At the same time, it is quite possible that construction will be started earlier, due to the current market situation.

Sanctions against Russia hurt the pockets of the people of Greece

This positive information has only one, but a very significant minus – the price of LNG from the United States, namely, it will be mainly supplied to Greece, continues to grow, reaching $ 1,800 per 1,000 m^3. And in the near future it will continue its growth, in the future reaching $ 3,000 per 1,000 m³, which is almost 10 times higher than a year ago.

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