The Chairman and CEO of ADMIE, Mr. Manos Manousakis, described the €1 billion share capital increase as a “historic milestone” during his address at the 7th OT FORUM. As he explained, the funds raised will enable the acceleration of the program for major domestic island interconnections in the Dodecanese and the northern Aegean, as well as the second interconnection between Greece and Italy.
“We view the fact that the State is participating in a share capital increase of a company it controls as a strong vote of confidence. All the more so when these funds come from the Recovery Fund, as we know that our partners have set very demanding conditions for the absorption of these funds. This shows that they trust ADMIE,” he noted.
Mr. Manousakis also referred to the progress made in the tender for the Corinth–Kos electrical interconnection cables, with the completion of the technical bid submission phase.
As he noted, the evaluation process has already begun by the Operator’s relevant Committee, in order to move forward with the project, which is a prerequisite for the broader interconnection of the Dodecanese with the mainland’s power grid.
Regarding the critical role that networks play in the EU’s energy security and economic development, the head of the Operator noted that the Grids Package is expected to be enacted by the end of the year, providing for investments of approximately €1 trillion at the pan-European level to strengthen interconnectivity among countries.
As he explained, the war in Ukraine and the conflict in Iran have highlighted the vulnerability of the networks, noting that these developments “are forcing us, for the first time, to consider resilience investments regarding the protection of critical infrastructure from potential external threats.” In this context, as he noted, the General Secretariat for Critical Infrastructure was recently established to plan the necessary investments for protecting the power grid.
Furthermore, he spoke of the need for government assistance in streamlining the permitting process to accelerate the development of power grids, which often faces obstacles and opposition from local communities. “We are calling for social consensus so that the grids can be developed, the green transition can move forward, and we can achieve energy security,” he noted.
Regarding renewable energy, Mr. Manousakis argued that Greece is an international success story in terms of renewable energy penetration, with the national targets set for 2030 for the development of green power having already been achieved. In this context, he added that the time has now come to develop energy storage. “Because we have a surplus, this electricity is exported. However, it could be stored to reduce the more expensive energy used during evening hours from fossil fuels.”
He emphasized that the entire leadership of the Ministry of Environment and Energy is intensively preparing the framework to accelerate storage, a sector about which he expressed optimism that “it will be the next success story.”