Stop on new wind turbines in the Cyclades

«I want to remind you that for a few hours last week, Something happened that had never happened before in Greece: all of the country’s energy—its electricity—was generated from renewable energy sources, namely hydroelectric and solar power.», the prime minister said a few days ago during his tour of Karditsa. Mr. Mitsotakis was referring to the record-breaking electricity production that occurred recently, when the sun and wind powered the entire country for five full hours.

The prime minister, who is a member of the advocates of the use of natural resources, which manifested itself in 2019, with the acceleration of the phase-out of lignite, he has made no secret of the fact that there is serious concern within the government regarding the development of renewable energy sources.

The social reactions seen on many Greek islands regarding the wind turbines, the view of collective bodies, local government officials, and environmental organizations that there is a concentration of facilities on certain islands and the perception among local communities that wind energy conflicts with tourism development and the aesthetics of the landscape have repeatedly pitted citizens against investors in recent years. The result is endless legal battles, delays and project freezes, as More and more investors seem to be losing heart from the hard-core opponents of wind turbines.

At this juncture of geopolitical tension, great uncertainty, and a growing need to change the country’s energy mix and reduce dependence on Russian fuels, renewable energy sources are playing a leading role. However, the government seems to understand that this battle between the established mindset favoring polluting fuels (lignite, natural gas) and the energy transition, which is considered the solution to the Gordian knot of energy costs, It cannot be achieved with society against us.

Inaccessible mountains and… islands

«There has been a backlash from local communities and we have indeed selected a number of areas of particular interest to be excluded from renewable energy sources and, in particular, from large wind turbines, which, due to their size, impact the scale of the landscape. »However, there are also areas where we can increase the penetration of renewable energy sources," he stated last month while speaking at the International Fair in Thessaloniki, the Prime Minister. The first tangible evidence of the new direction was The Strategy of the Unconquered Mountains (White Mountains, Taygetos, Mount Saos on Samothrace, Tymfi, Smolikas, Mount Falakro, Mainalo, etc.).

Any intervention in these mountains will be prohibited, such as building new roads, land subdivision, or the installation of wind turbines—a policy that is increasingly paving the way for the same or a similar pattern to extend to the islands as well, particularly the Cyclades where they encounter one of the strongest anti-wind power movements in the country. The exclusion of the wind farms According to reports, the Cyclades Islands are described in detail in the South Aegean Regional Spatial Plan, and this will pertain to new permits.

Islands such as Andros, Tinos, Naxos but other items have also been found from time to time at the forefront of the protests, with municipal authorities leading the fight against wind turbines. Who doesn't remember the case of Mr. Yiannis Stefos in Tinos, which began developing a small 1.8 MW wind farm in the mid-2000s. A series of tragicomic events and insurmountable obstacles ensued, leading to the investor’s financial ruin. The investor found himself on the brink of bankruptcy until to have the project become operational in early 2022. A full five years after the equipment was ordered! «I’ve been through an odyssey that has come at a huge financial and personal cost. The project will need to run for at least five years before it turns a small profit for me,» he tells «business stories».
He points out that the wind farm, despite the municipality's obstacles, may have been operational, but That doesn't stop the legal battle, as the issues from previous years remain unresolved!

The Wind Power Market in the Cyclades

Η the government's intention to expand the safety net which opened up to the impassable mountains, will also be captured in in the special spatial plan for renewable energy sources, which the Ministry of Environment and Energy is developing and aims to enact legislation in 2023.

The Wind power in Greece has now reached 4.5 gigawatts of capacity and accounts for 18% of the country's electricity, thanks to a growth trend in recent years. At the same time, in Europe they account for 15% of the produced electricity and by 2030, they must reach 43%. This is a goal that, according to the wind energy industry, is achievable only if the licensing process is simplified. The renewable energy capacity currently in operation in the Cyclades region totals 48.5 MW, of which 8.5 MW comes from solar energy.

Suggestions

Based on the plan Joint Ministerial Decision, which has already been prepared by the researchers and was presented several months ago to the members of the relevant committee of the Ministry of Environment and Energy, The following interventions result, which may be subject to change in the future:

■ In inhabited islands of the Aegean and Ionian Seas -outside Crete- The maximum permitted land coverage ratio for wind farms shall not exceed 4% per municipal district (i.e., 0.53 standard wind turbines per 1,000 stremmata). Especially on islands not interconnected with the mainland power grid, and until such time as they are interconnected, the total capacity of wind farms per island should not exceed twice the peakdemand on that island over the medium- to long-term horizon (one decade).

■ It will be permitted the siting of offshore wind farms in all of the country's maritime areas that meet the operating requirements, provided that they are not subject to a specific legal regime expressly prohibiting establishment or do not constitute an exclusion zone, such as designated marine or underwater parks or certified passenger shipping routes. The installation of wind turbines will be prohibited within 1,500 m of the coastline, in enclosed bays with an opening width of 1,500 m, in Organized Aquaculture Development Areas, or at a distance of less than 500 m from aquaculture facilities, etc.

■ The siting of wind farms will be permitted on all of the country's uninhabited islets, provided that they do not fall within an exclusion zone.

■ Regarding wind farms Additional exclusion zones are being added as defined by the framework currently in force, which include areas designated as Landscapes of Outstanding Natural Beauty, ’roadless« areas, proposed residential areas that will result from the new Local and Special Urban Plans currently under study or the General Urban Plans, etc.

■ Maximum percentages of land area covered by wind farms It is recommended that they be limited in island regions classified as having developed or developing tourism sectors to 2% (from 4%).

■ For solar energy, it is recommended that the following areas be considered The most suitable (priority) are those that are barren, unirrigated, and not intended for grazing. Preference should also be given to areas slated for restoration, such as former lignite mining sites and quarries, landfill restoration sites, etc.