Under efforts to expand its business and renewable energy capacity in Greece to 500MW by 2025, EDP Renewables has constructed and inaugurated a 45MW wind energy plant.
The plant is EDP Renewables’ first wind energy farm in Greece and is expected to help avoid 48,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions per annum, thereby helping to decarbonise the Greek economy and EDP’s operations.
The plant is sited near the town of Malesina in central Greece and is expected to produce enough electricity to power over 28,000 households.
EDP Renewables says it will invest over €500 million ($564,9 million) to expand its renewable energy business in Greece through 2025, as the company seeks to expand its role in the country’s energy transition.
Expanding the renewables portfolio will also enable consumers to be provided with affordable electricity.
Miguel Stilwell d’Andrade, CEO of EDP and EDP Renewables, said: “The country’s commitment to Renewables presents a great opportunity for the company, and we plan to continue to explore opportunities that both strengthen our leadership position in the renewable energy sector and boost the country’s energy transition.”
In 2018, renewable energy accounted for 12% of the country’s energy mix, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency, and increased investments and the enactment of supporting local and regional policies expanded the share to 40% in 2020.
Today, Greece is able to avoid 4 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions owing to the installed renewables capacity.
The Greek Ministry of Environment and Energy has set a target to increase renewables’ share in the energy mix to 35% by 2030 with up to €20 billion ($22.5 billion) in investments anticipated to be mobilised through the Greek Energy and Climate Plan for clean energy infrastructure development and energy efficiency programmes.
In late November, the Greek government secured €2.27 billion ($2.58 billion) in funding from the European Commission to fund the development of onshore wind, photovoltaic, and solar with storage, biogas, biomass, landfill gas, hydroelectric power, concentrated solar power, and geothermal power plants.
