Plans to turn Greece into the pre-eminent entry point for natural gas to Balkan markets, with billed investments exceeding one billion euros, was the main topic of discussions on Friday between Greek PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis and the CEO of Italian energy infrastructure multinational Snam, Stefano Venier.
Snam is a major shareholder in Greece’s National Natural Gas System Operator S.A. (DESFA).
The company has a significant presence in its home base of Italy, along with France, Austria and the UK. It has partnered in Greece with Belgium’s Fluxys, Spain-based Enagas and Damco for control of 66 percent of DESFA’s shares. Alone, Sman has a 54-percent stake in the joint share vehicle Senfluga, which in turn controls a majority stake in DESFA.
According to reports, Venier detailed DESFA’s development plan for the 2023-2032 period and pledged a one-billion-euro total investment over the nine-year plan, aimed to transform Greece into the primary entry point for Balkan countries’ energy supply, especially in the wake of the end to Russian natgas dependency.
Conversely, the Snam delegation reportedly emphasized the need for major energy infrastructure projects to proceed as planned in Greece, especially a second parallel pipeline with the current one, connecting Komotini in northeast Greece to the Corinth region in the south. The second pipeline is deemed as necessary to increase transport capacity and relieve congestion along the current network.
