The second, and even more important, priority is
to ensure Europe’s energy security, promote
access to energy for all, protect the weak and
cope with energy poverty.
Therefore, the Greek presidency will see the
launching of discussions on the “2030 framework
for climate and energy policies”. The aim is to
maintain the momentum of energy efficiency,
which remains high. Two thirds of the energy effi-
ciency’s economic potential remains unexploited.
The main message that the MINENV leadership
wishes to promote, is plain enough: “We cannot
afford to waste energy, when the cheapest form of
energy is the one not being used.”
The leadership of the Ministry believes that the
T
he leadership of the Ministry for the
Environment, Energy and Climate
Change (MINENV), Minister Yannis
Maniatis and Deputy Minister Makis
Papageorgiou, have supported, during their term
of office, major decisions that contribute to the
energy security of the European Union, such as
those regarding hydrocarbon exploration, the TAP
gas pipeline, and the future interconnection
between Israel, Cyprus and Greece through the
construction of an undersea transmission cable,
as well as a natural gas pipeline.
Thus, one of the priorities is to give central stage
to areas where Europe needs to develop policies
that will also help Greece and upgrade its role.
Trade with Greece
108
Priority to
Hydrocarbon
Exploration
By Christos Colonas
The developments in the fields of hydrocar-
bon exploration in the Greek territory, inter-
national energy interconnections involving
Greece, the privatization of the Independent
Power Transmission Operator (IPTO) and the
Public Power Corporation (PPC), as well as the
fight against energy poverty will dominate
the energy priorities of the Greek presidency.
