Greece becomes net electricity exporter in 2024

Greece went from net imports of electricity of 18% in 2019 to a small surplus in the foreign balance in the sector last year, mostly attributed to gas power plants. It reflects a comparative advantage in production relative to other countries in the region, according to Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’s Chief Energy Adviser Nikos Tsafos.

In 2024, Greece achieved a surplus in the total balance of electricity exchange with neighbors. Although marginal, just 307 GWh, it was only the second time since at least 1990, the year for which the oldest Eurostat data is available, the Green Tank said. In the meantime, the country was a net electricity exporter only in 2000.

It compares to net imports covering 18% of demand in 2019, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’s Chief Energy Adviser Nikos Tsafos pointed out in an opinion piece for Energypress. At the time, it bolstered power prices, lowered the total trade balance by EUR 400 million and exposed Greece to risks of network or power plant outages abroad, he added. The switch to net exports reflects the country’s comparative advantage in electricity production, in his view.

Net imports in 2019 were 9.94 TWh.

Gas power output spikes 35.9% while coal plants share slips to all-time low

Renewables including large hydropower facilities covered 50.5% of consumption last year and amounted to 50.3% of production, the environmental think tank’s report shows. Electricity demand grew 5.5% to 56.9 TWh, after two consecutive years of decline. The increase was mainly met by fossil gas.

Excluding large hydroelectric plants, renewables accounted for 25.3 TWh of production. Natural gas plants contributed 21.3 TWh or just 623 GWh less than their historical high, registered in 2021. Annual growth was 35.9% against 19.8% for the renewables item.

Oil-fired aggregates in non-interconnected islands came in third with 3.9 TWh, followed by large hydropower plants (3.5 TWh).

Coal plants slipped to fifth place with 3.2 TWh, an all-time low. In absolute terms, their annual drop was 28.3%. Also of note, coal power output was 85.7% lower than 2014.

Wind in partial correlation with power exports

Exports don’t make prices low, at least not in an interconnected system like the European one, but exporters do have lower prices than their neighbors, Tsafos wrote. In 2023, for example, prices in Greece were EUR 15 per MWh higher than in Bulgaria. Last year they were lower by EUR 2 per MWh, he noted.

In 2023, Greece had a deficit of EUR 575 million in the electricity segment. Data for the first 11 months of 2024 show a surplus of EUR 61 million, Tsafos added.

Greek gas power plants provide flexibility for neighboring electricity systems

On a daily basis, there is a partial correlation between wind and exports, he said. There are a number of reasons for the significant increase in gas power output, but the key one is the need for flexibility in the surrounding region, Tsafos underscored.

“Baseload units, and especially flexible units that can scale up and down their production according to the needs of the system, have an added value. In our region, there are not enough such units – especially natural gas,” he explained.

Gas power exports were especially high in November and December.

“One reason electricity prices rose in the summer in Southeastern Europe and in the winter across Europe was the lack of power during the hours when renewables are underperforming – that is, when the sun is down in the summer, and when there is no wind in the winter. Insufficient cross-border trade concentrated the problem in Southeastern Europe in the summer, while in the winter the issue was pan-European,” Tsafos added.

Renewable energy curtailments reach 860 GWh in 2024

The share of renewable energy in the mix would have been higher if there were no curtailments. They amounted to 860 GWh in 2024, which is equivalent to 3.3% of total production from renewables, the Green Tank said.

The latest official data showed that photovoltaic capacity in Greece reached 8.93 GW in peak terms. The target for this year is 8.5 GW.

According to the Hellenic Wind Energy Association (HWEA or ELETAEN), wind power capacity grew to 5.36 GW.