The Institute of Energy for South East Europe presented on Tuesday its full proposal on the establishment of an independent state agency whose exclusive responsibility would be to attract and develop the investment opportunities in the upstream sector.
“All hydrocarbon exploration activities in Greece have essentially ceased since 1998, when DEP-EKY was absorbed by Hellenic Petroleum as the latter was floated on the Athens and London Stock Exchange. Thus the sole public agency responsible for hydrocarbon exploration and exploitation in Greece was eliminated,” Mrs Teresa Fokianou former managing director of the Public Petroleum Corporation’s “Hydrocarbon Exploration & Development SA” (DEP-EKY) and IENE’s Secretary General said.
According to IENE’s proposal, the purpose of the aforementioned agency should be the development and management, on behalf of the state, of the upstream oil sector in Greece including:
a. The management of the state’s rights as provided for in the current legislation
b. The promotion of hydrocarbon exploration, development and exploitation in Greece as a means for improving security of energy supply, the reduction of import costs and the development of a new industrial sector
c. The management of the state’s participation in the upstream sector
d. The national control of sensitive regions
e. The development of the concessions which still remain with HELPE
f. The effective contribution to the necessary mapping out of Greece’s sea frontiers.
Last April IENE submitted a full proposal to the Ministry of Development detailing the need for setting up a suitable body for undertaking all upstream activities in Greece. IENE so far has not received any response from the Ministry on the tabled proposal.
“Time is critical given Greece’s increasing dependence on imported oil and natural gas, at a point when other countries are actively seeking to exploit hydrocarbons deposits and also alternative sources” IENE’s chairman Costis Stambolis said.
Greece’s dependence is one of the highest in the European Union with the country’s needs being almost exclusively covered by imports, especially in recent years following the near-exhaustion of the country’s sole productive deposit of Prinos.
It should be noted that, at present only 2,000 barrels of the 380,000 barrels consumed daily in Greece are produced at Prinos.
“The financial repercussions of this oil dependence are particularly onerous, as fuel imports represent approximately 5% of GDP. A trend which only worsens from year to year,” observed Mr Stambolis.