ATHENS, Sept 9 (Askume) – Greece’s energy minister said on Monday a unified European Union power market would not work in southeastern Europe and would work with Romania and Bulgaria to permanently solve the problem of rising power prices in the region.
Greece produces about half of its energy at a low cost from solar and wind farms, but like the rest of southern Europe, prices rise periodically during the summer when demand for air conditioning is high and power is supplied from elsewhere. The country is small.
Energy Minister Theodore Skylarakis told a Greek radio station on Monday: “The power lines are not large enough to carry electricity from the central European market to the southeastern market. This will lead to exorbitant prices in a few days, which is unacceptable.”
He said the EU’s goal of unifying electricity markets was not working. The Greek prime minister is expected to write to the European Commission this week on the issue.
The energy ministry said in a statement that the energy ministers of Greece, Bulgaria and Romania are pursuing a joint initiative “to create a permanent intervention mechanism whenever excessive prices occur as southeastern Europe is cut off from the rest of the European energy market”.
The Conservative government last month raised windfall profits taxes on energy companies to provide electricity subsidies to consumers struggling with rising energy costs.
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Sunday that his government would continue to do so as long as European authorities fail to resolve the issue.
