Negotiations on PPC unit sale to go on

The Energy Ministry has chosen to prolong its negotiations with the European Commission regarding the list of Public Power Corporation units that should go on sale, due to an ongoing disagreement.

While the bailout program’s timetable is putting great pressure on Athens, the Greek side has not yet responded to the Directorate General for Competition (DGComp) in Brussels about the list proposed to Greece, which includes the two power units at Megalopoli in the Peloponnese and the two at Meliti, near Florina in western Macedonia.

Sources say that minister Giorgos Stathakis is not prepared to accept the DGComp proposal and is insisting on the sale of the two plants at Amyntaio, western Macedonia, instead of the units at Megalopoli. This position is leading to the talks being prolonged, with obvious consequences for the process of reducing the PPC share in the country’s production capacity, and in the procedure for the completion of the third bailout review.

Stathakis has called a meeting on Friday at the ministry for the assessment of conditions so far and to formulate a response to the Commission.

It is noted that DGComp has rejected the proposal for the sale of the Amyntaio units because they will have to be withdrawn from production in 2020 and until then they will have to operated limited hours. The Megalopoli plants will operate until 2025.