Amazon: $1 billion investments in wind farms in Greece

Its investment in three large-scale new ones in Greece, announced the – the company’s largest renewable energy initiative in Greece to date. As announced by wind parks, they will help meet Amazon’s energy needs in the region, providing clean energy and supporting, at the same time, the achievement of Greece’s transition to RES use. The relevant announcement took place at the AWS Day powered by Logicom, in the presence of Environment and Energy Minister Theodoros Skylakis. With these projects, Amazon further strengthens its international energy investment portfolio. Four Power Purchase Agreements have already been signed in Greece, which concern three RES projects. In particular, two of these agreements concern the wind park in Vermio (north and south wind station of Vermio) in West and Central Macedonia, while two more in wind parks in the Mesokofi and Kouuras regions in the Peloponnese. As noted, infrastructure construction has already begun, and in 2026 new wind farms are expected to be fully operational. Overall, as a result of the projects, it is estimated that clean energy will be produced, corresponding to the electricity supply of 200,000 Greek households annually. The energy generated from the new projects will go directly to the central network, covering both Amazon’s operational needs and the needs of local businesses, public bodies and households. The operation of wind parks is expected to create significant economic benefits for Greece in the long term. Already, for the wind park in Vermium more than 100 new jobs have been created, while during the full operation of the stations the new jobs are expected to reach 300, according to Aer Soléir, who is the project’s implementing body, based in Dublin and a significant presence in Europe in the RES infrastructure development sector. The new projects are aligned with Amazon’s Climate Pledge, which is the company’s commitment to achieving zero carbon emissions by 2040. At the same time, they contribute to achieving the goals of the National Energy and Climate Plan of Greece, which provides for the production of more than 80% of the country’s electricity from RES by 2030. With 48% of the energy production in Greece based on fossil fuels, new wind farms are expected to help significantly reduce carbon emissions in the country and support Greece’s transition to clean energy production. Amazon’s Renewable Energy Projects are part of a wider initiative, involving more than 500 solar and wind energy projects worldwide. In this context, Amazon recently achieved its target for 100% use of Renewable Energy in 2023, seven years earlier than the original forecast for 2030. “The three, new wind farms in Greece are an important milestone in our investment activity for carbon-free energy across Europe and come to be added to the ever-increasing number of Renewable Energy projects we support in the country,” said Amazon Web Services (AWS) Director of Energy for EMEA, Lindsay McQuade. “With more than 180 wind and solar energy projects in over 12 European countries, we are committed to promoting the transition to clean energy both to support our operational needs and local communities,” she added. As part of its cooperation with Amazon, Aer Soléir, as a project development operator, has allocated more than EUR 1 million for investments in the local community, involving infrastructure upgrading, donations to schools, emergency services support, as well as financial support for local agriculture and local producers. In relation to the wind station in Vermium, Aer Soléir has invested an additional 1.8m euros for forest reforestation and biodiversity programmes in the region, respectively, involving upgrading of road networks in forest areas, the creation of recreational areas and walks that improve local society’s access to the forest, but also forest management programmes, which enhance the conservation of forest wealth in the area. The Minister for Environment and Energy, Theodoros Skylakis, said: “The cooperation of Amazon, Aer Soléir and the National Bank led to a very good news for our country, an investment of over $1 billion, which is in full progress and is expected to be completed within the next two years, offering clean energy, equivalent to energy to 200,000 households. This iconic investment is part of Amazon’s comprehensive strategic presence in Greece and the wider region. It is not just an energy investment, but an investment linked to all activities that Amazon is developing and will develop over the next few years in Greece. The important thing in the current investment, in addition to the new jobs created, is the combination of energy and development that characterizes it. It is a proof that we should not look at clean energy static or defensively. Clean energy launches growth towards the future, enabling us to think and move on to other activities, but it also strengthens the perspective of national, energy independence. That’s the target. The complete change of standard for the Greek economy, the transition to an economy that will produce itself abundant, cheap and clean energy, which will allow it to be a beacon of development and progress in the wider region.” The founder and CEO of Quantum Capital Group, Wil Vanloh, said: “Quantum is proud to support Aer Soléir in her partnership with Amazon in Greece. These energy supply agreements with Amazon demonstrate the success of Aer Soléir as a leading RES development platform and stress, at the same time, our commitment to promote sustainable energy solutions across Europe.” Aer Soléir’s CEO and founding partner Andy Kinsella said: “Since its establishment in 2021, Aer Soléir has committed to promoting Greece’s transition to green energy. With the support of our investors, Quantum Capital Group and 547 Energy, our financial partners, National Bank of Greece and Recovery and Durability Fund, as well as our local development partner, Enteka, we invest more than 500m euros in wind energy projects throughout Greece. We are proud that our projects contribute significantly to the goals of the Greek Government for Renewable Energy Sources and are excited to cooperate with Amazon.” The total investment is expected to exceed $1 billion and will be co-financed by the National Bank, as well as funds from the Recovery and Durability Fund. The Director-General for Corporate and Investment Banking of the National Bank of Greece, Vassilis Karamuzis, said: “The acceleration of Greece’s energy transition and attracting foreign direct investment are key priorities for our bank. We are proud to be the exclusive “Choice Partner” for Aer Soléir, participating, for our part, in Amazon’s largest Renewable Energy Supply Agreement in Greece. During the period 2014 – 2022, Amazon’s investments in RES across Europe yielded around EUR 2.4 billion in the regional economy and contributed more than EUR 723 million to Europe’s GDP, while creating more than 3,900 full-time jobs, only in 2022. As of 2020, AWS has created “Edge Location” in Athens, bringing advanced technologies such as “Amazon CloudFront”, “Lambda@Edge”, “AWS Shield” and “AWS WAF” to the country, linking Greece to the global infrastructure network of AWS. AWS cooperates with the Greek Government to exploit cloud technologies, with a view to enhancing innovation in Greece, including a pilot project to transform Naxos Island into a smart island, as well as the creation of the first European Outpost Testing Lab (OTL) in Athens.