Last week, a Greek inter-ministerial committee listed a photovoltaic project combining lithium batteries and electrolyzers as a strategic investment, meaning it could enjoy a fast permitting process.
Hive Energy will add at least 250 MW of PV capacity to its portfolio in Greece, which has been listed as a strategic investment project but has not yet been built. The picture shows a project of the company in Spain.
The Greek Interministerial Committee is chaired by the Greek Minister of Development and Investment and includes several other cabinet ministers. On Thursday, the committee agreed to grant so-called national "strategic investment" status to a new hydrogen energy project.
To be precise, the committee – made up of eight ministers and deputy ministers from the Greek government – has listed as strategic a 200 MW photovoltaic system that will be combined with a battery of lithium-ion batteries with a total capacity of 100 MW and A 50 MW electrolyzer capable of producing 16 tons of hydrogen per day was developed together. The energy storage capacity of the battery modules has not been announced.
The project, with an investment of 226.4 million euros ($224.4 million), is expected to create 442 new jobs during the construction phase and 24 during operation, the Greek government said in a press release. Bluesky300 IKE, the Greek subsidiary of British solar developer Hive Energy, will support the development of the project.
This isn't the only green power project Hive Energy hopes to build in Greece. pv magazine has learned that the company will add at least 250 MW of photovoltaic capacity to its portfolio in Greece, which has been listed as a strategic investment project by the Greek Interministerial Committee in the past, but has not yet been built.
strategic investment
So-called strategic investment projects are nothing new. Investors who consider their projects to be of strategic importance to Greece can contact Enterprise Greece - the "official investment and trade promotion agency of the Greek government, under the auspices of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Greece". operate."
Enterprise Greece then processes the investor's application and submits projects that meet the criteria for strategic investment to the Interministerial Committee for approval. During this process, investors are required to pay the bureau a fee for administering the application.
And paying such a fee is often worth it, as approved strategic projects may be eligible for state funding, although this is not necessarily the case. What's more, strategic projects can speed up the licensing process at all stages of project development.
The Greek government previously believed that strategic investment projects were necessary for the country to capitalize on capital investments in key sectors of the local economy. But so far, the government has not fully defined the specific elements of the project's strategy. For example, Greek inter-ministerial committees often approve PV projects that do not incorporate any innovative elements such as hydrogen.
And the so-called strategic investments of the Greek Interministerial Committee are not limited to energy projects. There is one of the most famous tourist destinations in Greece: Mykonos. Last week, the committee listed the development of a hotel resort in Mykonos as a strategic investment.