Offshore wind park plans put on hold
The European elections have led the offshore wind farm development program to an informal freeze.
The fear of the expansion of the reactions that started from Crete by a possible instrumentalization in the run-up to the European elections has put a brake on the dynamic development of the national program for the installation in the first phase (by 2030) of 1.9 gigawatts of offshore wind farms in the Greek seas, which has attracted huge investment interest from the largest foreign and domestic energy groups. In its full development, the program in 2050 envisages the installation of 12.4 GW in 25 maritime areas of the country.
The Ministry of Environment and Energy and the Hellenic Hydrocarbons and Energy Resources Management Company (EDEYEP) have, according to information, finalized the amended development plan for the Crete region, following the reactions expressed by the island’s regional authority, municipalities, chambers and hoteliers, but it has been frozen.
It will likely remain so until the European elections are over, a development that will add delays to the implementation of the program, which the political leadership of the Energy Ministry has linked to the transformation of the country into an exporter of green energy and the strengthening of its transit role in the wider region.
Greece has very good offshore wind potential and has managed to attract the investment interest of foreign and domestic groups. The region of Crete, in fact, has the best offshore wind potential in the Mediterranean. However, after the backlash the project was revised, limiting the initial capacity in the first phase of development of the national program from 800 to 600 megawatts. Of this, 400 MW concerns Akrotiri tou Aforismenou, where the plot Crete 2B was moved, after it was limited in area in order not to cause visual and sound disturbance, and 200 MW east of Sitia. The limitation of power was imposed for another reason, which is none other than the capacity of the grid.
As for the two other areas of Crete – i.e. Ierapetra and the Dionysades island complex – the periphery of the island remains radically opposite, as they are in Natura areas. In total the original program provided for the Crete region with a capacity of 2,135 GW.
