Greek Energy Market Research Articles

Is Greece Ready for a Hydrogen Energy Transition?—Quantifying Relative Costs in Hard to Abate Industries

During the past few years, hydrogen use has come to be considered as an alternative energy carrier in a future decarbonized world. Many developed nations are undergoing a shift towards low-carbon energy sources, driven by the excessive reliance on fossil fuels and the detrimental effects of climate change. This study aims to investigate the potential for hydrogen deployment in the Greek energy market during the next few decades. In this context, green hydrogen’s potential application in the Greek market is being assessed, employing an integrated techno-economic model grounded in worldwide trends and localized expenses. The forthcoming years will see an analysis of both the challenges and opportunities surrounding the integration and implementation of hydrogen in new and existing processes within Greece. Many alternative ways to produce hydrogen in Greece are investigated, contemplating different production paths. We evaluate how fluctuations in hydrogen, oil, and carbon prices affect the economics of green hydrogen adoption in oil refining, as is detailed in the draft of the European Union delegated act published in May 2022. The Levelized Cost of Hydrogen (LCOH) for different scenarios is calculated for the time frame up until 2050. A sensitivity analysis reveals that investment costs, electricity prices, electrolyzer efficiency, and carbon taxes significantly influence the LCOH, ultimately impacting the economic competitiveness of hydrogen production. These findings underscore the importance of aligning public–private partnership agendas in hydrogen production to create optimal conditions for investment attraction and development.

Techno-Economic Performance Assessment of a Trigeneration System Operating in a Hospital

The techno-economic performance evaluation of a combined cooling heating and power (CCHP) system installed in a hospital building in Greece is presented. The aim was to verify performance standards and evaluate real behavior, while highlighting the economic gains. In this research, system performance was evaluated using actual and year-round field measurements. The data were used to calculate the recovered heat and the generated electric energy. Furthermore, the performance was modeled and compared to the manufacturer specifications. Financial assessment was conducted through energy cost analysis to verify the operating viability of the system, both for its heating and cooling functions. The results showed that, overall, after eight years of operation, the energy efficiency was still within design standards. Electrical efficiency was constantly above 30%, while thermal efficiency was around 40–45%. Total efficiency was usually above the 75% threshold, characterizing the system as fully CHP operating. The analysis also pointed out the economic effectiveness of the system in the Greek energy market. The results verified the potential of a CCHP system for improving the energy and economic performance of a building.

A RADIATION DOSIMETRY ASSESSMENT OF WORKERS IN GREEK STYLE ROTISSERIES THAT USE PELLETS CONTAMINATED BY 137Cs AND 90Sr.

This work evaluates the 137Cs and 90Sr content of wood pellets of the Greek energy market and additionally calculates worker exposure in Greek catering establishments (rotisseries). Wood pellets and ash samples were analysed through high resolution gamma-ray spectroscopy and liquid scintillation. Imported pellets had higher 137Cs concentrations, especially pellets that were imported in bulk. Greek pellets had very smaller 137Cs amounts. Despite the high variation in 137Cs content the 137Cs exemption levels were not exceeded in any case. However, if an enrichment factor of 300 is assumed, some ashes samples may exceed 13000 Bq/kg. The highest amounts of 90Sr were measured in ashes from pellets manufactured abroad in 2015, with up to 1060 Bq/kg. A linear regression model of the ratio of 137Cs to 90Sr activity followed our data well, and other sets of data partially. A dosimetry assessment of kitchen employees revealed that maximum possible dose intake reached 400 nSv/year.

“Greening” the Hellenic Corporate Energy Policy: An Integrated Decision Support Framework

The current financial and economic crisis, as well as the wider socioeconomic and environmental pressures, including climate change, put seriously into question the traditional development patterns. This is particular true for Greece, which is in the middle of the crisis. These pressures create high expectations for coordinated actions and holistic interventions to address comprehensively the problems toward a competitive economy. In this direction, a lot of Greek companies demonstrate their willingness to address the current challenges, through the adoption of “green” practices, within the corporate social responsibility (CSR) framework. To the best of our knowledge, the need of a methodological framework and related tools to assess companies' environmental responsibility, connecting indicators with policies, aims, and their interactions, as well as providing appropriate guidelines and strategic interventions to improve their operational and environmental performance, is more than necessary within the Greek economy. This paper presents an integrated framework for Enterprises Energy and Environmental Policies (ENTREE Policies) to be adopted in the Greek energy market, able to measure and access the companies' carbon footprint and provide proposals for strategic interventions, promoting environmentally friendly technologies such as the renewable energy sources (RES) and the rational use of energy (RUE).

The Greek Energy Market and the International Commitments: Tale of a Spoiled Brat

Because of its ratification of the Kyoto Protocol and membership of European Union, Greece has agreed to regulate its greenhouse gas emissions and improve the penetration of renewable energy sources in its energy mix. This study outlines the modifications made to the Greek legislative framework in connection with the liberalization of its energy market and the promotion of renewable energy. The capability of Greece to fulfil these obligations is not examined. However, more rational, complete and long-term energy planning would have to be adopted in future because the new EU targets require more punctuality, reliability, effort and effectiveness than the present system allows.

Decision support for assessing demand side management programmes

The structural changes of the energy markets, as well as the energy companies’ obligations to abide by the emission limits have contributed to a shift among the companies’ priorities, giving new impulse to demand side management (DSM) programmes, which can be seen as a way to meet several of the energy companies’ modern objectives. However, appraising the DSM options’ contribution to these objectives is a complex task, considering the imprecision and uncertainty of the related information. The objective of the paper is to present an integrated decision support methodology for the pre-selection of the DSM programmes, using an experts based system, and their evaluation, using the ‘linguistic TOPSIS’ model, so as to identify and assess the DSM contribution to the energy policy objectives. The application of the method to the Greek energy market and the related sensitivity analysis are presented and discussed.

Application of life cycle assessment and exergy analysis in a combined cycle power plant using natural gas at Lavrion, Greece

Natural gas (NG) has been penetrating the Greek energy market in the last few years. The first electricity production plant using NG in Greece was built in the city of Lavrion, South of Athens. This power plant uses combined cycle and has a capacity of 174 MW. The application of the life cycle analysis (LCA) tool enables us to perform a quantitative and qualitative analysis of all environmental impacts of the plant. The extension of LCA to an exergetic life cycle analysis (ELCA) leads to the evaluation of the thermodynamic imperfection of the production processes. This approach allows for a holistic view of the performance of the power plant. The environmental impact categories that were analysed are the global warming, smog formation, acidification, nitrification, ozone depletion, abiotic or resource depletion and land use. The application of ELCA has led to the analysis of the exergy content of the flue gases.

A Linguistic Decision Support Model towards the Promotion of Renewable Energy

In the pursuit of energy market restructure to sustainable forms of development, governments have at their disposal an increasingly diverse mix of renewable energy sources options. Indeed, renewable energy sources can be seen as a way to reduce carbon emissions, decrease fossil fuel imports, and meet other energy policy objectives. However, appraising renewable energy sources options is a really complex task, taking into consideration the imprecision and subjectivity of the related information. The main scope of this article is to present a transparent and flexible multiple criteria decision support model, based on TOPSIS extension, using the 2-tuple representation. This model aims to assist the energy actors for appraising renewable energy sources options in terms of their contribution to the energy policy objectives, using linguistic variables. Moreover, the application of the proposed model's software realization to a number of renewable energy sources options of the Greek energy market is presented and discussed.

A linguistic TOPSIS model to evaluate the sustainability of renewable energy options

Renewable Energy Sources (RES) could be used to reduce carbon emissions, decrease dependence on fossil fuels and meet energy policy objectives towards Sustainable Development (SD). However, appraising the RES options' contribution to SD is a complex task, considering the different aspects of SD and the uncertainty of related information. The paper's objective is to extend the numerical multicriteria method TOPSIS for processing linguistic data in the form of 2-tuples, so as to show how energy policy objectives towards SD and RES are assessed using linguistic variables. Moreover, the application of the proposed method to the Greek energy market is presented.

Energy, economic and environmental performance of heating systems in Greek buildings

The introduction of natural gas in the Greek energy market broadened the options in the field of space heating. Residents in five major Greek cities can choose from a variety of different fuels and systems for heating their houses or working spaces; 12 more cities will be connected to the gas network within the next 5 years. Considering that space heating is the major energy consuming activity in the Greek building sector and that the environmental constrains imposed by the Kyoto protocol will be met only with difficulty, if at all, a strategy concerning the developments in space heating seems to be necessary. This however presupposes an elaborate analysis of the overall performance of the alternative systems, taking into consideration the particular conditions of the Greek energy system and the ‘established’ way of designing residential and mixed-use buildings. The present paper aims to present the empirical comparative results related to the three most popular heating systems operated in Greek multi-apartment and mixed-use buildings, which use three different fuels, respectively: a central oil-fired boiler, a unitary gas-fired boiler and unitary heat pumps.

95/04643 Natural gas pricing policy. The case of the Greek energy market

95/04643 Natural gas pricing policy. The case of the Greek energy market

Natural gas pricing policy: The case of the Greek energy market

The evolution of the price of natural gas (NG) is examined in industrial and tertiary residential sectors for European Union (EU) countries. The methodological approach is that of comparative analysis. NG price is seen to be positively correlated to prices of liquid fuels. NG price in the tertiary residential sector is significantly higher than that for the industrial sector for all countries examined. An attempt is undertaken to examine tax policies for NG and liquid fuels. All governments of EU countries have the policy of not applying direct taxes to the NG industrial price. They have also taken measures to support its penetration in the residential tertiary sector by applying lower taxes than those on liquid fuels.