By Kakia Papadopoulou
Recently, the Development Ministry imposed a one million euro fine to the Public Power Corp (PPC) for violating environmental rules and specifically, Minister Giorgos Souflias said that there were environmental breaches in the lignite stations of Ptolemaida, Kozani and Megalopolis.
Additionally, the Ministry has imposed the use of low-sulfur heavy fuel oil use to PPC from Oct 1 instead of high-sulfur use which will burden further the production cost by 10 euros per MWh.
So far so good.
The problem, however, is that PPC is in a such bad financial shape that the payment of the fine or the use of cleaner fuels will push the company more deeply into the red.
On the other hand, highly-ranking officials told energia.gr that the state owes some 2 billion euros to PPC in the form of Public Service Obligation’s (PSO’s) since 2002- the year of PPC’s entry to the stock exchange. This figure has never been published officially, despite the fact that PPC is a listed company.
The whole story resembles in many points the Olympic Airways’ downfall.
Some months ago, Minister Souflias responded to Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas’ recommendations that Greece needs to reduce the lignite use that “a significant reduction in the coal emissions which would result from a limited lignite uses could jeopardize the country’s energy system viability,” to add that “ without lignite the country will go 80 years back.”
By the way, European Union does not suggest lower lignite use but the upgrade of PPC’s old units which curtail high levels of CO2 emissions, and the construction of new stations using clean-coal new technology.
The climate change is maybe the thorny issue for the planet nowadays. PPC needs to proceed with a multi-million dollar investment plan in order to upgrade and modernize its power generation capacity. But is does not have the money while the state is still mostly responsible for its affairs.
On the one hand, the state imposes PPC’s tariff policy while at the same time it staffs the company with extra personnel-an old tactic to secure jobs for votes. Currently, PPC is heavily overstaffed but it lacks a specialized working force. It owes something like 2 billion euros to PPC and it asks the company at the same time to pay a one million euro fine, because it has not the money to upgrade its units. The whole scene starts becoming surrealistic.
According to latest EU rules, Greece should reduce its gas emissions by 25% in the period 2008-2012. PPC is responsible for 40% of the emissions on national level.
It is unavoidable that EU will impose gradually fines to PPC for keeping its high CO2 emission levels. By the way, the Olympic Airways’ saga had the same starting point, fines from the EU.