Renewables

Greek PV sector analyzed – data show rapid growth in all segments

Photo: gerhardt12 on Pixabay

Published

August 31, 2023

Country

Comments

comments icon

0

Share

Published:

August 31, 2023

Country:

Comments:

comments icon

0

Share

HELAPCO’s report on the state of the photovoltaics sector in Greece for 2022 showed significant expansion.

More photovoltaics were installed last year in Greece than any other technology, with a share of 85%. The country was third in Europe in terms of the technology’s share in power production, with 13.6%.

According to the annual report by the Hellenic Association of Photovoltaic Companies, HELAPCO, new solar power installations amounted to 1,392 MW in 2022 in peak capacity terms, pushing the total to 5,526 MW. In the following graph are the annual additions, in blue, and total capacity, in yellow.

PV

It is also notable that new self-consumption installations more than doubled in a year to 116 MW from 44.6 MW, reaching 215.8 MW. Traditionally, it is a segment where Greece lagged, but now it appears that it has picked up pace, as more consumers are eager to reduce their electricity bills.

PV

When it comes to size, plants between 10 kW and 1 MW account for 70.9% of total installed capacity, compared to 21.9% for the ones with over 1 MW, while rooftop installations, below 10 kW, make up 7.2%.

Greece is tenth globally in installed solar capacity per capita, with 526 W. HELAPCO also noted that PV is by far the most democratic form of energy: 60,500 installations were operating at the end of 2022 and growth is accelerating.

Thanks to photovoltaics, 4.6 million tonnes of CO2 emissions were prevented, which is equal to 3.7 million new conventional cars or if 119.2 million trees were planted and grown for a decade.

Investments in photovoltaics rose to EUR 1.08 billion in 2022 (shown in the graph below) from EUR 606 million a year before.

solar

Another interesting aspect is the average energy efficiency of photovoltaic systems in Greece. Blue shows solar farms and rooftop units are in yellow.

PV

PV producers react to new energy plan

Greece is revising the National Energy and Climate Plan (NECP) for 2030. In the latest version, the authorities have cut the target capacity to 13.4 GW from the initially proposed 14.1 GW, prompting a reaction from HELAPCO.

Solar power is the only energy source that can currently muster the investments needed to realize an ambitious goal for 2030, it stressed.

Furthermore, the association said photovoltaics can be licensed faster than other types of renewable energy projects, adding that solar power is accessible to many more individuals and entities.

The producers also reacted to the steep drop in the battery storage goal, from 5.6 GW to 3.1 GW, noting that batteries planned to be installed just in buildings amount to 1 GW. They argued there is not much capacity left to invest in large projects.

Comments (0)

Be the first one to comment on this article.

Enter Your Comment
Please wait... Please fill in the required fields. There seems to be an error, please refresh the page and try again. Your comment has been sent.

Related Articles

croatia ina eon ppa virje solar

INA, E.ON sign power purchase agreement in Croatia

10 July 2025 - Croatian oil and gas company INA and German energy firm E.ON's local subsidiary signed a PPA for electricity from renewable sources

Solar beats nuclear in June becoming EU biggest electricity source first time

Solar beats nuclear in June, becoming EU’s biggest electricity source for first time

10 July 2025 - Solar was the EU’s largest source of electricity for the first time in June. Records for photovoltaics and wind rolled in in May and June

Cyprus curtails renewable electricity first half 2025 whole last year

Cyprus curtails as much renewable electricity in first half of 2025 as whole last year

09 July 2025 - Curtailments of renewable electricity in Cyprus topped 167 GWh in the first six months of 2025, equivalent to last year's entire cuts

romania energy storage anre double taxation

Romania ends double taxation of energy storage

09 July 2025 - The National Energy Regulatory Authority has approved the regulation on the elimination of double taxation of energy storage