Reports related to this article:
Project(s): View 2 related projects in PECWeb
Plant(s): View 1 related plant in PECWeb
Released January 30, 2023 | GALWAY, IRELAND
en
Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland)--Construction has begun on an 840-megawatt (MW) natural gas power plant at the Aegean port of Alexandroupolis in Greece.
The 600 million-euro (US$599 million) combined-cycle gas turbine (CCGT) project is seen as vital to the country's energy security and also to that of the surrounding Balkan region to which it will export power. It will be constructed by a consortium of companies led by Copelouzos Group and Greece's leading electricity supplier, PPC.
The plant's output will replace that of three lignite coal plants currently being decommissioned. It will also be directly connected to Gastrade's floating storage and gasification unit (FSRU), which is currently under construction at Alexandroupolis. The FSRU will have a capacity of 153,500 cubic meters (cbm) of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and will be connected to the National Natural Gas Transmission System (NNGΤS) of Greece with a 28 kilometer (km)-long pipeline. It will start operations by the end of 2023 and will be capable of handling up to 5.5 billion cbm per year. It is seen as strategic by Greece and the European Union (EU) to diversifying gas supplies. Greece traditionally relied on Russian gas exports for almost half of its needs before Russia invaded Ukraine last year and sparked a European-wide gas shortage by withholding supplies through its state-owned company Gazprom.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis attended the ceremony. "A few months ago, we met right here in this place in Alexandroupolis, to announce the start of work on the new liquefied natural gas terminal, which is already being built at a fast pace and is expected to be delivered in early 2024. And today, I am returning to Alexandroupolis to celebrate laying the groundwork for the most modern power plant in the country, which will be powered, as you heard, by the floating LNG regasification station. Alexandroupolis is already turning into an important energy hub, with not only a national, regional, European dimension. By the end of the year, or early '24, the FSRU, which will be ready by then, will receive 5.5 billion cubic meters of gas. And from this starting point, the pipelines of TAP and IGB will run through the Balkans to supply our wider region. And tomorrow, why not, to reach Ukraine also?"
"We are here to welcome a project that is changing the energy landscape: Greece is now shielded, it acquires energy sufficiency," said Christos Copelouzos, chief executive officer of Copelouzos Group. "At the same time, a new energy pillar is being created for South-Eastern Europe, as our country will be able to export electricity to the neighboring Balkan states--Bulgaria, North Macedonia and even Serbia."
Bulgaria will be the first country to benefit from the power plant's exports when it is commissioned in 2025. "We welcome the inauguration of the project for the construction of the gas-fired power plant," said Rossen Hristov, Bulgaria's caretaker energy minister. "It will provide greater stability in the region and provide energy security not only for Greece but also for southeastern Europe, where demand for electricity is growing every year."
The plant also will contribute to meeting the European Green Deal targets set out by the European Commission for Greece's transition to low-emission energy production. Copelouzos said that the equipment that will be installed in the plant is suitable for "hydrogen combustion and can operate with mixed fuel." In recent weeks, Greece unveiled its new, more ambitious green energy plan, with renewables expected to supply 80% of the country's power by 2030. The revised National Plan for Energy and Climate (NPEC) will see total renewable energy targets, consisting of solar photovoltaic, onshore and offshore wind, and hydroelectric power, increased to 28 gigawatts (GW) compared to 19 GW in the previous plan. Solar will supply the lion's share with 14.1 GW of total capacity by 2030, increasing to 34.5 GW by 2050. The rest will come mainly from onshore wind (7.1 GW), offshore wind (2.7 GW) and hydropower (4 GW). Energy storage also will play a key role going forward with up to 8 GW planned, and battery energy storage system (BESS) capacity will supply 5.6 GW of that amount.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 Trillion (USD).
The 600 million-euro (US$599 million) combined-cycle gas turbine (CCGT) project is seen as vital to the country's energy security and also to that of the surrounding Balkan region to which it will export power. It will be constructed by a consortium of companies led by Copelouzos Group and Greece's leading electricity supplier, PPC.
The plant's output will replace that of three lignite coal plants currently being decommissioned. It will also be directly connected to Gastrade's floating storage and gasification unit (FSRU), which is currently under construction at Alexandroupolis. The FSRU will have a capacity of 153,500 cubic meters (cbm) of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and will be connected to the National Natural Gas Transmission System (NNGΤS) of Greece with a 28 kilometer (km)-long pipeline. It will start operations by the end of 2023 and will be capable of handling up to 5.5 billion cbm per year. It is seen as strategic by Greece and the European Union (EU) to diversifying gas supplies. Greece traditionally relied on Russian gas exports for almost half of its needs before Russia invaded Ukraine last year and sparked a European-wide gas shortage by withholding supplies through its state-owned company Gazprom.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis attended the ceremony. "A few months ago, we met right here in this place in Alexandroupolis, to announce the start of work on the new liquefied natural gas terminal, which is already being built at a fast pace and is expected to be delivered in early 2024. And today, I am returning to Alexandroupolis to celebrate laying the groundwork for the most modern power plant in the country, which will be powered, as you heard, by the floating LNG regasification station. Alexandroupolis is already turning into an important energy hub, with not only a national, regional, European dimension. By the end of the year, or early '24, the FSRU, which will be ready by then, will receive 5.5 billion cubic meters of gas. And from this starting point, the pipelines of TAP and IGB will run through the Balkans to supply our wider region. And tomorrow, why not, to reach Ukraine also?"
"We are here to welcome a project that is changing the energy landscape: Greece is now shielded, it acquires energy sufficiency," said Christos Copelouzos, chief executive officer of Copelouzos Group. "At the same time, a new energy pillar is being created for South-Eastern Europe, as our country will be able to export electricity to the neighboring Balkan states--Bulgaria, North Macedonia and even Serbia."
Bulgaria will be the first country to benefit from the power plant's exports when it is commissioned in 2025. "We welcome the inauguration of the project for the construction of the gas-fired power plant," said Rossen Hristov, Bulgaria's caretaker energy minister. "It will provide greater stability in the region and provide energy security not only for Greece but also for southeastern Europe, where demand for electricity is growing every year."
The plant also will contribute to meeting the European Green Deal targets set out by the European Commission for Greece's transition to low-emission energy production. Copelouzos said that the equipment that will be installed in the plant is suitable for "hydrogen combustion and can operate with mixed fuel." In recent weeks, Greece unveiled its new, more ambitious green energy plan, with renewables expected to supply 80% of the country's power by 2030. The revised National Plan for Energy and Climate (NPEC) will see total renewable energy targets, consisting of solar photovoltaic, onshore and offshore wind, and hydroelectric power, increased to 28 gigawatts (GW) compared to 19 GW in the previous plan. Solar will supply the lion's share with 14.1 GW of total capacity by 2030, increasing to 34.5 GW by 2050. The rest will come mainly from onshore wind (7.1 GW), offshore wind (2.7 GW) and hydropower (4 GW). Energy storage also will play a key role going forward with up to 8 GW planned, and battery energy storage system (BESS) capacity will supply 5.6 GW of that amount.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 Trillion (USD).
