Greece has set more ambitious targets for expanding solar and wind power to cut greenhouse emissions by 2030 under a revised energy and climate plan presented on Friday.
Athens will aim for an 82% share of renewables in electricity generation by 2030 versus a 66% target in its previous 2019 plan, under the plan to be submitted to the European Commission for approval.
EU member states’ national energy and climate plans detail their contribution to the EU’s overall target to cut greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030 and offer a road map for investments by the energy industry.
With abundant sun, the Mediterranean country has more than doubled its renewable energy output since 2014 with new solar and wind power plants and has shut most of its coal-fired plants.
“As we speak, the country has overshot its targets for the penetration of renewables as well as for cutting greenhouse emissions,” Greek Energy and Environment Minister Theodore Skylakakis said at a news conference to present the plan.
But Skylakakis said that the revised plan did not deal with the problem of how to adapt to climate change that is already happening.
“The prevailing opinion is that we will be able to prevent the climate crisis before it occurs… but the climate crisis is already here, with huge economic and fiscal implications,” he said.
“We’re in October and this weekend we will have 34 degrees Celsius (in Greece) (93 degrees Farenheit) – which means that we have already entered the climate crisis.”
Greece, still recovering from the financial turmoil after it almost dropped out of the euro zone in 2015, has been hit by devastating floods and wildfires that scientists relate to soaring summer temperatures.
The country has been struggling to pay to repair the damage and to make its infrastructure more resilient to extreme heat.
Under the new plan, Athens estimated it will need additional investment worth 95 billion euros ($103.97 billion) by 2030, including policies to make thousands of buildings energy efficient, install more solar and wind power and build energy storage.
Total spending is estimated to total around 330 billion euros by 2050.
Those actions will help the country cut greenhouse emissions by 58.6% by 2030 on the way to climate neutrality by 2050, higher than a 43% cut envisaged in the 2019 plan.
($1 = 0.9137 euros)
(Reporting by Karolina Tagaris and Angeliki Koutantou)
