New Measures for Industry’s Energy Costs in Greece

Several months have passed since the initial interministerial meeting in September on industry’s energy costs, yet no definitive solution has emerged. The government initially leaned toward the Italian model—subsidizing industrial electricity for several years while encouraging companies to invest in renewables. Combined with existing EU ETS carbon cost compensation, this would deliver significant relief. However, expectations that the Italian-style approach would gain Brussels’ approval proved overly optimistic; technical concerns raised by the European Commission have delayed progress during a critical period when energy costs threaten industrial viability. Environment and Energy Minister Stavros Papastaurou recently suggested a final solution is near. The most likely path now involves optimizing existing carbon cost compensation—not expanding it—but this faces constraints: compensation levels depend on Greece’s overall climate performance, which has improved due to coal phase-out. Thus, cleaner industrial CO₂ footprints yield lower compensation—a paradoxical disincentive. Industry associations argue compensation alone is insufficient and must be paired with additional tools, such as the Modernization Fund or other targeted initiatives. Meanwhile, the Ministry highlights Greece’s improved wholesale electricity prices: from Europe’s most expensive in 2019, it now ranks 10th. For industrial users, prices align with the EU average—and are just 1% higher for the most energy-intensive sectors. Notably, Greek industry reduced electricity consumption by over 4% last year—far exceeding other consumer categories—reflecting both cost pressure and efficiency efforts.