The construction works of the Alexandroupolis gas-fired power plant, developed by three Greek energy groups (the Public Power Corporation – PPC, DEPA Commercial and Damco Energy of the Copelouzos Group) officially began, after an inauguration ceremony held in the presence of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis.
The construction of this new unit, with a capacity of 840 megawatts (MW) is expected to be completed at the end of 2025 and it represents another step for Greece to diversify its energy sources and meet the objectives of the European Green Deal.
The power plant will be directly connected to the Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (FSRU), also under construction which will turn Alexandroupolis into an important energy crossroad for electricity and natural gas.
The President and CEO of PPC, Georgios Stassis pointed out that the new power plant aims to strengthen Greece’s role as a reliable energy exporter in Southeast Europe.
“Given that current technologies that provide long-term storage from renewable energy are either at an experimental stage or very expensive, natural gas has an important role to play,” he said.
The new unit will be as much efficient as possible and in line with the net-zero commitments of the country, for example, by using sustainable gases like hydrogen.
“With this new power plant, Greece acquires another critical project that will contribute to uninterrupted energy supply,” continued the President of DEPA Commercial, Ioannis Papadopoulos, adding that, at the same time, the unit will also help balance the electricity network allowing greater penetration of renewables into the energy mix.
Bulgaria will be the first country to import electricity from the plant.
“The energy crisis in Europe requires even closer cooperation and common efforts between Bulgaria and Greece,” noted the Minister of Energy Rosen Hristov, who also took part in the inauguration ceremony.
Indeed, Bulgaria holds a 20 per cent stake in the Alexandroupolis FSRU and a reserved capacity of one billion cubic metres (bcm) per year.
