Speech by Dr. – Ing. Giorgos Pechlivanoglou (Vice President of the Eunice Group) on the subject: “Energy interconnections and the new energy era in the Southeastern Mediterranean” during the 5th Cretan Energy Conference.
From the podium of the 5th Cretan Energy Conference, Dr. – Ing. Giorgos Pechlivanoglou, Vice President of the Eunice Group, extended an open international invitation to the representatives of the global energy market for investment and technological cooperation on the projects related to international interconnections, strategic RES investments and energy storage implemented by the Eunice Energy Group from Greece, paving the way for all major energy investments in Greece, in the Southeastern Mediterranean and in Europe.
Dr. – Ing. Pechlivanoglou, during his speech on the subject: “Energy interconnections and the new energy era in the Southeastern Mediterranean”, addressed the conference participants, distinguished representatives of the global energy market and investment groups and organizations, members of the academic technological community and institutional representatives from Greece, the European Union, the USA, Egypt, Israel, Cyprus etc., and he highlighted that:
– “The operation of the interconnections in combination with the increase of the installed RES units enables the optimal utilization of the generated energy. This is carried out through the increased use of the interconnections, which take advantage of the extensive geographic dispersion of the interconnected network for possible transports of large amounts of energy and the differential prices between European countries.
In the medium term, this results to increased profitability of the interconnections, as well as of the storage units, which allows for the stable and fast amortization of the relevant investments.
While pointing out the great geopolitical and investment significance of the proposed projects, Eunice’s representative announced the open global invitation to investors, technological partners and interested parties from the podium of the 5th Cretan Energy Conference. In particular, regarding collaboration in the Greece-Africa Power Interconnector (GAP) project, an intercontinental interconnection project of international significance, Dr. – Ing. Pechlivanoglou noted that:
- “Innovation in the field of developing large-scale electricity grids constitutes a strategic opportunity both for Greece as well as Egypt, playing a central role in the energy and geopolitical developments in the Southeastern Mediterranean and the wider area.
The utilization of the EEZ between Greece and Egypt and the close transnational cooperation of the two countries in matters of strategy and energy constitute a historic opportunity for the implementation of innovative projects, which have the potential to change the region’s energy and geopolitical map. Eunice, through the projects it develops and the know-how it brings to the market, contributes to this national and international effort”.
While presenting in detail the portfolio of the major strategic projects and international interconnections of Eunice Energy Group, the Vice President of the Eunice Group specifically referred to the following:
- The “Aigaio Project”, a project of national importance and at the same time of common European interest, amounting to 1.5 billion euro, related to the installation of wind parks on islets of the Aegean, noting that by integrating the necessary technical, environmental and legal provisions it proceeds normally, in accordance with the institutional framework of the European Union and the Green Deal on energy, the environment and biodiversity.
- The Greece-Africa Power Interconnector (GAP), a project of international significance for intercontinental interconnection by cable laying, connecting the Mersa Matruh region in Egypt with Greece (at Atherinolakkos, Lasithi, Crete). Also, at the integration of the Southern Aegean Interconnector (SAI), a national interconnection project, so that the design will allow for optimal energy transport between Greece and Egypt, and therefore between Europe and Africa, reducing the probability of synthesis of the critical lines interconnecting Crete and Central Greece.
- – The Ptolemaida BESS & Arcadia BESS, important energy storage projects, in Ptolemaida and Megalopolis respectively, with a total power of 500MW and a total capacity of 2GWh by the Eunice Group, which create a significantly sized energy buffer, which allows the increased deferral of power generation and distribution through the interconnections, achieving optimal financial results in buying and selling energy products on international markets.
- “The overall proposal by the Eunice Group regarding interconnections in the new energy era, RES projects and storage, truly constitutes a paradigm shift in the way that the energy systems of the future are being designed and implemented”, said Dr. – Ing. Pechlivanoglou, who, during his speech, noted the following in particular:
- “The new order of things in energy generation, management and transport during the era of delignitization and of the mass infiltration and use of renewable energy sources requires technological and organizational leaps to be made.
A basic principle of the conventional operating structures of electrical grids in the past was that of stability and autonomy in the wider geographic boundaries. Today, the new energy era requires great flexibility from electricity grids, as well as from the production and stabilization units thereof.
The solutions to the grid stability question on the following day require the expansion of interconnections, both in terms of energy transport capacity as well as in terms of geographical extent, while the increase of energy storage volumes in the electrical grids is an important factor.
The geographical expansion of national and international electrical grids has multiple benefits, integrating a variety of generation plants as well as RES units, with wide geographic dispersion. This results to the increase of grid stability due to the combination of the stochasticity of RES units, thus reducing the needs in energy storage volume. Especially in the case of integration of a large number of photovoltaic plants, the geographical extension from the East to the West offers additional benefits by taking advantage of the time difference between generation and consumption in the grid’s different geographical areas.
The interconnection projects of the Eunice Group have all these parameters at the core of their design, proposing the international interconnection between Greece and Egypt with multiple technical advantages due to the geographical dispersion of the specific project, as well as the natural interconnection between two major grids, the European and the African grid.
Moreover, also integrating the Southern Aegean Interconnector (SAI) national interconnection project in the design allows for optimal energy transport between Greece and Egypt and, therefore, between Europe and Africa, reducing the probability of synthesis of the critical interconnection lines between Crete and Central Greece.
At the same time, the development and integration of large RES projects, such as the Aigaio Project by the Eunice Group, allow for the optimal use of the interconnections, regardless of the electricity generated and the extreme demand thereof”.