Energy Min.: We are ready for a difficult winter

“We are prepared for the winter, the government will not let households get cold” the Minister of Energy and Environment Kostas Skrekas assured SKAI tv. “We have doubled the capacity of Revythoussa with a new floating tank, we have doubled the power generation from lignite and we have the possibility to use oil in five natural gas plants,” he explained.

Mr. Skrekas added, however, that saving energy must be part of our daily life, as in Germany and Italy, but in June – July we had a significant reduction in consumption. “In July, the reduction in consumption exceeded 15% in one month,” he said.

“All of Europe is worried and fretting about the coming months. It looks like we’re going to have a very difficult winter due to Russia’s strategy of strangling Europe’s energy supply by reducing gas flows and driving up prices. Our government saw the problem very early on, and created a safety net for household consumers and SMEs.

“Absorption of increases at least 80%”

The government’s commitment is to absorb at least 80% of the increases in energy for as long as necessary, he repeated. “We will absorb 89% of the increase for September for smaller restaurants and shops, hair salons, convenience stores. In the larger companies we absorb 50 to 55% of the increase, while a part of the increase is deducted from income tax,” he noted.

Mr. Skrekas clarified that “we are examining new financial tools beyond the subsidy for medium and larger companies to support them vis-à-vis increased energy prices”.

“In September alone, we will subsidize households with 1.1 billion euros for just that month. It is the biggest subsidy that has probably ever been given,” noted the minister.

“Net Charges”

The government has obliged the providers to clear charges, the minister reminded, the Regulatory Authority for Energy-RAE has a table with comparisons of providers’ tariffs on its website, while by government law the consumer can change provider free of charge if he has paid the previous bill. Price differences between providers do not exceed 20%, he estimated. In September an average household with 400 kilowatts would pay almost 350 euros for electricity alone, after the government subsidy the amount payable drops to 60 euros.