The emerging domestic offshore wind energy market is being monitored by two European companies. This is Swedish Hexixon and Danish Copenhagen Offshore Partners (COP), with the aim of claiming part of the pie of the national plan, which was presented last week by EDEFEP.
Hexicon, based in Stockholm and present in over twenty countries, has been active in the industry since 2009, when it was founded. The company sees, as it says, great opportunities in Greece, which is why it founded its Greek subsidiary, Hexicon Power, a year ago. The company’s plans will be presented this afternoon at an event at the Swedish embassy.
At the same time, COP will inaugurate its new corporate offices in Athens next Thursday. The company was founded in 2015, based in Copenhagen and operates worldwide. COP cooperates with the capital management company Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP), with which it cooperates Mytileneos, for the construction of offshore wind farms in our country. CIP has around 15 billion euros in assets under management and is considered the largest dedicated renewable energy fund worldwide. The main developer for all the projects to be done by the CIP-Mytilineos scheme is the COP.
And they are not the only foreign companies seeking a presence in Greece through schemes with Greek energy groups. THE TERNA Energy has an agreement with Ocean Winds (a joint venture between EDR Renewables and Engie), Hellenic Energy with RWE, the Motor Oil with Abu Dhabi Future Energy Co. (Masdar), n INTRACAT with Parkwind, while the ELEVEN already cooperates with Quantum Energy Partners for onshore wind farms, without ruling out that this cooperation will be extended to marine ones as well. PPC and the Kopelouzo group are also looking for partners.
The National Energy and Climate Plan (NECP) includes the construction of offshore wind farms of total capacity 2 GW until 2030. Analogous is the electrical space that ADMIE is mandated to commit, so that the projects that will be built until then are ready to “plug in”.
As announced by the Deputy Minister of Environment and Energy, Alexandra Sdoukou last Friday at an energy conference, the updated ESEK was sent the same day to Brussels for its final approval and will soon be put up for public consultation.
The first two pilot projects are planned to be developed without tenders in the region between Alexandroupolis and Samothrace they are those of the Kopelouzos group, which has secured a license since 2012 for a 216 MW park, and of TERNA Energy for 485 MW. In fact, the two groups are reportedly considering joint collaboration for the required research studies.
Two small pilot projects with a power of up to 40 MW each are interested in promoting and the ΙΠΕΝ, in an effort to be “driver» to develop the necessary domestic supply chain, but also to mitigate any backlash that may arise for offshore wind. At the moment, the area they are destined for is not known, while the crucial funds from the islands’ Decarbonisation Fund are being sought.
ESEK’s 2 GW of offshore wind until 2030 is expected to come from the “reservoir” of the medium-term projects of the national plan in 10 regions, with a total capacity of 4.9 GW. These areas are located in the Diapontian Islands, Gyaros, Donoussa, Patraikos Gulf, Rhodes, Chios, Agioi Apostoloi of Evia and three points in Crete, two near the Damasta substation and one in Atherinolakkos.
Also included are projects for long-term development, with a total capacity of 6.9 MW and in new areas, such as Ikaria, Karpathos, Kasos, Antikythera and Agios Efstratios.
EDEYEP aspires to complete all the necessary studies in one year and to issue the Presidential Decrees, which will determine the Areas of Organized Development of Offshore Wind Farms, to pave the way for the first competition. An undertaking that is considered extremely complex to be able to be implemented within such a narrow time frame and given that many ministries and related agencies are involved.
(Republished from euro2day.gr)
