The inseparable connection between energy, the economy and development in Greece and Southeast Europe was highlighted in the annual National Conference "Energy and Development", which was organized by the Institute of Energy for SE Europe (IENE) under the auspices of the Ministry of Environment and Energy, on 1-2 December 2021 in Athens.The inseparable connection between energy, the economy and development in Greece and Southeast Europe was highlighted in the annual National Conference "Energy and Development", which was organized by the Institute of Energy for SE Europe (IENE) under the auspices of the Ministry of Environment and Energy, on 1-2 December 2021 in Athens.
The Conference, which celebrated 25 years of continuing organization was held in hybrid form at the Divani Caravel Hotel in Athens, with the participation of more than 78 distinguished speakers and panelists from Greece and abroad. These included representatives from government and political parties, the academic community, executives of international organizations and companies, while important interventions were made by renowned experts and reputable analysts. A total of 430 people participated in this major energy event, most of them online, while 130 people attended in person, with many speakers travelling from abroad.
The conference’s main theme was “Energy Transition and Achievable Solutions- Global and Regional Perspectives” which among other topics provided the opportunity for a comprehensive examination of the current energy crisis. Energy suppliers, traders and consumers hotly debated all relevant issues including EU’s Green Deal and how this has been affected by the current price anomalies. In this context the key role of natural gas and renewables but also of nuclear power were highlighted. The presentation of IEA’s World Energy Outlook 2021 by IEA’s senior modeler Apostolos Petropoulos proved a real bonus.
As IENE’s Chairman Costis Stambolis pointed out in his opening remarks, “Today the challenges are completely different than they were 25 years ago when this conference first started, and are mainly related to the energy transition in a clean fuel environment. At stake is the carbonization of the entire energy system with the use of new technologies, without excessive burden on prices and with absolute assurance of energy security. The goal, therefore, must be to provide uninterrupted and clean energy at affordable prices”.
This year’s event hosted a strong government representation and conference speakers included, among others, the Minister of Development and Investment, Adonis Georgiadis, the President of RAE, Dr. Athanasios Dagoumas, the General Secretary of Energy and Mineral Raw Materials, Alexandra Sdoukou, the Secretary General for International Economic Affairs of the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs, John Smyrlis, the Head of Environment of SYRIZA, the main opposite party Socratis Famellos. The Minister of Environment and Energy, Costas Skrekas, also addressed the conference via video message. Former Energy Ministers Giannis Maniatis and Giorgos Stathakis actively participated in different sessions.
In addition this jubilee conference hosted senior executives from large local and regional companies as well as from international energy groups and organizations together with distinguished researchers and academics from various countries in Europe, the Balkans, and the Middle East. Speakers included Dr. James Watson, Secretary General of EUROGAS, from Brussels, Dr. Gina Cohen, Lecturer and Consultant, Natural Gas Industry from Herzliya in Israel, William Polen, Senior Director, United States Energy Association, Prof. Andrey Konoplyanik, Advisor to the General Manager of Gazprom export LLC, Co-chair of the Russian side of the Stream 2 “Internal Markets” project of the Russia-EU Gas Advisory Council, Boyana Achovksi, Secretary General of Gas Infrastructure Europe (GIE) from Brussels, Ahmet Türkoğlu, CEO, Turkish Energy Exchange (EPIAS), Gökhan Yardım, Partner and Manager of ADG Anadolu Naturalgas Consultancy and Trade Ltd. from Ankara, Dr. Katerina Sardi, CEO & Country Manager of Greece of Energean, Dr. Bassam Fattouh, Director of the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies (OIES), Dr. Charles Ellinas, Senior Fellow of the Atlantic Council, Dr. Leo Drollas, Independent Energy Consultant, Tim Yeo, Chairman of The New Nuclear Watch Institute (NNWI) from the UK, Dr. Yurdakul Yigitguden, Independent Energy Advisor and Former Coordinator of OSCE Economic and Environment Activities, Dr. Narsi Ghorban, Secretary to the Environment and Energy Commission of the ICC (Iran Committee) from Tehran, Konstantin Konstantinov, CEO, ΙΒΕΧ, Bulgaria, Milos Mladenovic, Managing Director, SEEPEX, Serbia, Prof. George Ioannou, CEO, ΕnEx Group, Dr. Ioannis Desypris, senior executive of the MYTILINEOS Group and former Chairman of IENE, Professor Pantelis Capros, Director of the E3M Lab of the National Technical University of Athens and Chairman of the Scientific Committee of IENE, Liana Gouta, Director of Energy Policy & International Relations of the Hellenic Petroleum Group, Panagiotis Ladakakos, Chairman of the Hellenic Wind Energy Association, Dr. Sotiris Kapellos, Secretary General, Hellenic Association of Photovoltaic Companies, Dr. Stelios Loumakis, Chairman, Hellenic Association of Photovoltaic Energy Producers, John Giarentis, Chairman and CEO, DAPEEP, Dr. Michael Thomadakis, Strategy & Development Division Director, National Natural Gas System Operator, Slavtcho Neykov, Chairman of the Board of Managers, Energy Management Institute, Bulgaria, Mihailo Mihailovic, Independent Energy Consultant, Serbia, and many others.
The main sponsors of the Conference included Hellenic Petroleum (ELPE), the Hellenic Energy Exchange, the Independent Power Transmission Operator S.A. (IPTO) and law firm KG Law. Among supporters were ENERGEAN, Elpedison, Mytilineos, Motor Oil Hellas, DESFA, Grant Thornton, DAPEEP and Ensco. Furthermore, the conference’s activities are supported by Sunlight, EssEnCon, GreenTop, Lamnidis Law, CSMED and Energy Live. Communication sponsors included energia.gr, the newspaper Naftemporiki and naftemporiki.gr, the Hellenic Edition of “Foreign Affairs” and energypress.gr.
