Greece exporting one third of its electricity to neighboring countries

Greece has become a net exporter of electricity, providing up to a third of its daily production to neighboring countries.

According to Minister of Environment and Energy Thodoros Skylakakis, Greek electricity exports now regularly reach 2 GW out of a total production of about 6 GW. It is a big difference from previous years, when the country was a net importer.

At 20:00 on Monday, December 9, Greece was exporting 159 MW to Albania, 533 MW to North Macedonia, 496 MW to Bulgaria, 39 MW to Turkey and 510 MW to Italy. Total exports amounted to 1,737 MW within the hour, according to official data from Independent Power Transmission Operator (IPTO or ADMIE).

It is a result of tighter conditions in the wider Southeast European electricity system, as a result of many factors. Ukraine needs imports of up to 2.1 GW after the destruction of much of its network during the war. At the same time, drought has reduced water levels in hydroelectric dams and renewable energy sources sometimes underperform, depending on weather conditions.

Subsidies to protect consumers

As a result, wholesale prices rose in Greece to levels between EUR 110 per MWh and EUR 173 per MWh since the beginning of December, creating a major issue for the government. The ministry has rolled out subsidies for households this month and it will soon announce similar measures for businesses.

Skylakakis pledged that support would continue for as long as the problem persists. The costs of the measures would be covered by the taxation of power producers, based on an agreement with the European Commission. The costs for household subsidies reached EUR 20 million so far for December.

Greece, together with Romania and Bulgaria, also engaged in a dialogue with the European Commission, in order to apply a market mechanism for reducing wholesale prices in the region during times of upheaval. The goal is to activate the measure in the second half of 2025.