Environment and Energy Minister Stavros Papastavrou on Thursday highlighted the significant progress made in the natural gas market across Southeastern Europe, while also referring to the challenges still facing the electricity sector. His comments came during the informal Ministerial Council of the Energy Community, held in Athens to mark its 20th anniversary.
The session was attended by European Commissioner for Energy and Housing Dan Jorgensen, Energy Community Director Artur Lorkowski, and 16 ministers and deputy ministers from 10 countries in the region.
"Our region has long remained only partially integrated into Europe. This is a structural disadvantage for all our citizens and is now recognised by all stakeholders," Papastavrou said.
He added:
"We should be proud of the progress made in the gas sector with the vertical corridor. We are no longer dependent on Russian gas. We now have LNG shipped from the south, reaching as far as Ukraine and Moldova. However, much work remains in the electricity sector, which is technically complex, heavily regulated, and constantly evolving. Now is the time for our region to close the gap - for the prosperity of our citizens and our entire area."
Commissioner Jorgensen stressed the need for the EU to decarbonise and end reliance on Russian energy imports, citing the Commission's latest proposal for a gradual ban on Russian gas by 2027.
"Since 2022, we've been cutting our dependency on Russian fuels. In 2022, 51% of the EU's coal came from Russia - today, it's zero. Oil imports dropped from 27% to 3%. Gas imports fell from 45% to 13%. But even 13% is too much," Jorgensen said.
"We will not allow Russia to blackmail EU member states using energy as a weapon. That's why we are moving to ban Russian gas imports. Legislative proposals have been submitted and are now under negotiation. I thank the Greek government for its full support," he added, stressing the need for deeper integration of EU energy markets.