Mitsotakis: Greece’s transformation – Playing a leading role in energy security in Europe

At the beginning of his speech, which is taking place a day after the agreement with ExxonMobil for drilling in the Ionian Sea, Mitsotakis said that he could not think of a better place “for our transatlantic cooperation”.

“Europe, as we know, is a major energy importer. The agreements that have been signed and will be signed show us that there is substance behind the cooperation, there is a foundation. This cooperation is not only based on trade but also a continuous bond based on common, strategic goals. Greece and the US have a responsibility to provide economic energy to citizens and businesses. We want to secure energy sources and raw materials that are not involved in geopolitical tensions. We are not afraid of competition. We want to innovate, develop new technologies but also reduce emissions, each in a different way,” he noted.

Referring to Greece, the Prime Minister said that at the beginning of its first term, the government made a strategic decision to move away from lignite – for environmental and economic reasons – which provided 60% of the country’s electricity. “Instead, we invested in RES, we exploited the sun and the wind,” he said, describing the wind as “a force that we can harness for good purposes.”

As a result, RES  cover over 50% of our electricity, the Prime Minister said, emphasizing that for the first time in 2024 Greece became an electricity exporting country. “In 2023, we spent 75 million euros importing electricity, while last year we earned 112 million by exporting electricity,” he stressed, adding that at the same time, we also invested a lot in natural gas to ensure that we have and will have a predictable energy supply in the future.

He added that investments are also being made in our network. “When I began my term, Greece, in 2019, had 400 million investments in the natural gas network. Now, proper use is also being promoted through digitalization. Today, we are in the midst of a 6 billion euro project to connect all our islands to the mainland network,” he said, noting that “we want to connect mainly Crete because it will save us a lot of money.” Regarding the development of the network, “we also want to promote the storage of electricity, so that we can be even more flexible,” he added.

The Prime Minister also stressed that the government wants the country to be at the forefront of developments. “Since we are a stable energy provider at a low price, we will be able to advance even better in this sector,” he said, speaking of a “great transformation” that has taken place in the country so that it can expand in all these sectors.

Mitsotakis also made special reference to the research program for hydrogen deposits, expressing his satisfaction with the signing of the agreement for Block 2, in the northwestern Ionian Sea as we will have the first research mission for hydrogen extraction in Greece of the last 40 years. “We know that Europe will need natural gas for many, many years to come,” he stressed, noting that the country has made a strategic bet on natural gas and “step by step we have built an entire network to ensure the security of natural gas.”

Summing up what has happened in recent years (we inaugurated the Transatlantic pipeline, the connection between Greece and Bulgaria, the FSRU in Alexandroupolis and the inauguration a few days ago of the new compressor station in Komotini), the Prime Minister underlined that “we have become an energy and energy security provider for the entire southwestern Europe.”

As a result of all these investments, “we have also become a key country for natural gas and its transportation”, he added, underlining that until a few years ago we were not even a destination for natural gas. “We simply imported natural gas to cover our internal needs. Now they have made a turn, 17 billion cubic meters of gas were exported from Greece.” he said.

The Prime Minister also stated that “the US sees Greece as an entry point, a gateway, for Europe’s energy needs” while referring to imports from Russia, he stressed that this situation will not continue. “The ban on natural gas from Russia gives us a great opportunity to be able to redraw the energy map of southwestern Europe,” he explained, emphasizing that this ban must be implemented soon.

“This is also a message to the Europeans. We cannot let natural gas from Russia enter Europe through the back door, namely Turkey,” he added.