Greek Energy and Environment Minister Stavros Papastavrou stated that the country is at the epicenter of global energy developments, highlighting the participation of top members of Donald Trump’s government at the sixth Partnership for Transatlantic Energy Cooperation (P-TEC) to be held in Athens on November 6 and 7.
Speaking to TV station Skai TV on Friday, Papastavrou stated that the conference will be attended by U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright, U.S. Secretary of the Interior and head of the National Energy Sovereignty Council Doug Burgum, and U.S. Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources Michael Rigas. The event will also feature energy ministers from 25 countries from Europe and the American continent, and more than 400 high-level officials.
“Our country will be at the center of global energy developments,” he noted. Papastavrou said Greece’s main objectives were to secure and further enhance the country’s geostrategic position as an entry point of American LNG into Europe, as well as to strike significant commercial deals that would benefit Greece.
The Greek Energy Minister also referred to the significant impact of imported natural gas prices on all European countries. “Our country had an obligation, and this government is putting it into action, to develop and utilize the hydrocarbons sector as part of our energy independence strategy. Neighboring countries such as Israel, Lebanon, Turkey, Cyprus, and Albania have all done so, except for us, due to ideological obsessions for so many years.
Regarding the issue of water scarcity and the announcements made yesterday during the event marking the 100th anniversary of EYDAP, attended by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Papastavrou highlighted the dramatic annual reduction of water reserves by 250 million cubic meters.
Long-term measures include major projects carried out once in a generation, including, among others, the Marathon Dam (delivered in 1929 under Eleftherios Venizelos), Lake Yliki (1956), and the Mornos project (1979 under Konstantinos Karamanlis).
In parallel, desalination projects are also being implemented across 40 islands, he stressed.
