” the government [grec] Do not agree, in principle, with the Commission’s proposal [européenne] Government spokesman Yiannis Economou said at a press conference to reduce its consumption of natural gas by 15%.
The European Union has unveiled an arsenal of measures that are supposed to allow the European Union to confront a possible disruption to Russian supplies. This plan, which will be discussed on July 26 at the European Council, specifically stipulates that each country will do “everything possible” to reduce its gas consumption by at least 15% between August 2022 and March 2023 compared to the average of last. five years.
“compulsory character”
Greece, in its opposition to this plan, joined the position officially expressed by Portugal and Spain. For his part, Greek Energy Minister Costas Skrekas confirmed in an interview with a local radio that Greece has joined the group of member states opposing the Brussels proposal. He cited Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, Malta and Cyprus among the resistance countries.
Knowing that almost 70% of the gas imported by Greece is used to produce electricity, the minister explained, such a reduction is very likely to lead to disruptions in the supply of individuals and companies. “We agree not only with the mandatory nature of this measure, but also with the level of reduction that Brussels is calling for,” added Skrekas.
He insisted that Greece had already taken a number of measures to reduce its gas consumption, notably by asking the public group PPC to double its lignite production and reserves, if necessary, to convert five gas-fired power plants.
