HELLENiQ Energy: Southeastern Europe to become #1 region in renewables growth

Southeastern Europe is going to become the number one region in Europe in terms of renewable energy growth, according to HELLENiQ Energy.

In its latest corporate presentation, the Greek group outlined its views on energy market trends and expectations both in the home country and abroad.

Given the fact that Southeastern Europe has lagged in renewables growth until now, HELLENiQ expects it is going to develop much faster in the years to come, providing investors with superior returns. This is why the group is interested in growing its green portfolio in regional markets, starting with the period until 2025 and extending beyond that.

HELLENiQ expects that renewables penetration in Greece would only reach 66% by 2030, versus 78% in the National Energy and Climate Plan (NECP) Therefore, the document also focuses on neighboring markets capturing some of the opportunities.

It is notable that HELLENiQ expects growth of 366% in Romania by 2030 and 600% in other Balkan countries, compared to 160% in Greece.

The utility’s strategy projects a total of 1.08 GW in renewable electricity installations by 2025 and 2 GW by 2030, compared to 680 MW currently in operation or under construction. Total project pipeline is 4.2 GW. Photovoltaics make up 60%, the share of storage is 25% and the remaining 15% is wind power.

Within the ongoing and future investments, 29% is in an early stage and 36% has pending applications for production licenses or environmental terms. The company submitted the requests for environmental permits or grid connections for 17% of capacity, 15% is in an advanced stage or ready to build and 3% is under construction.

Siamisiis: Storage necessary for new renewable projects

CEO Andreas Siamisiis recently said that HELLENiQ would soon reveal new renewable energy investments other than acquisitions. In the future, large-scale renewable investments will no longer be viable without energy storage, in his view.

Apart from green energy, the group continues its focus on hydrocarbon exploration, with decisions on drilling exploration wells in licensed areas to be taken in 2024-2025. In addition, it is investing in upgrading refineries for better energy efficiency, in green hydrogen projects and electric mobility.