A meeting was held at the City Hall of Farkadona between the Minister of Environment and Energy, Mr. Konstantinos Skrekas, the Mayor of Farkadona, Mr. Spyridonas Agnantis and the General Manager of EDA THESS, Mr. Leonidas Bakouras.
The General Manager informed about the successful course of the implementation of the Development Program for 2021 that has been approved by RAE since last December and the Investment Planning of EDA THESS. During the meeting, he pointed out that the planning for the supply of another new area in the Region of Thessaly, the Municipal Community of Farkadona, which has been included in the 5-year Program of the Company, begins. As he mentioned, investments of € 1,5 mln. are foreseen until 2025 in the Municipality for the development of natural gas distribution network and the connection of the consumers.
Mr. Bakouras consequently stressed that, despite the unstable environment, EDA THESS is on an upward trajectory, strictly observing its commitments in accordance with the Approved Development Program, fully respecting the regulatory, legislative framework and the decisions of the Authority. At the same time, the Company exercises its duties based on the principles of equal treatment, transparency and impartiality, ensuring its Operational Independence.
Since the first quarter of 2021, the profitable results highlighted the development course of the Company. Fully utilizing its dynamic, EDA THESS remains committed to the planning and traces its future development for the achievement of the business objectives across all the range of its activities.
EDA THESS continues to invest and contributes to the saving of resources and the increase of energy efficiency, reducing the energy cost of the citizens. The increasing use of natural gas – the dominant fuel for the transitional post-lignite era has a key role in achieving the State’s environmental objectives.
In this regard, the Minister of Energy and Environment stated that:
«I am glad to be here today, as something very important is announced, the introduction of natural gas to Farkadona. This means lower energy costs for households and environmental protection as natural gas is the purest fuel, eliminating the causes of climate change and climate crisis. At the same time, we set the tone of growth because natural gas, in addition to the domestic use, is also used by companies. Thus, the energy cost is reduced, while at the same time new job positions and development conditions are created in the region.
I would like to personally thank Leonidas Bakouras and EDA THESS, which leverages all the means provided by the State, and develop their great work expanding the distribution network in the area of their responsibility. The increased interest of the people of Farkadona in connecting to the distribution network, gives us the impetus to support with more financial resources, so that more and more people can switch to the use of natural gas, the purest fuel.
At this point, I want to highlight the decision of the State to accelerate the delignification of the country’s energy mix. In the last 10 years we have managed to reduce the production of electricity from lignite by 70% and natural gas is called to play the role of the base fuel for electricity generation. The transition of electricity from lignite to natural gas efficiently reduces the carbon dioxide emissions and as the friendliest form of energy, it is the transitional fuel until we reach the green economy.
The General Manager, Mr. Bakouras commented:
«I would like to thank the Minister who stands by us throughout this period of the pandemic for the implementation of the Development Program of EDA THESS amounting to € 156 mln. from 2021 to 2025. Also, I would like to thank the Mayor for the hospitality and the immediate response.
With the implementation of the Program, we manage to attract big investments in the region of Thessaly due to the stable tariffing policy that we follow, since from this year the distribution tariff has been decreased by an average of 21% but especially in the industry by 56%. It is important to note that 20 energy – intensive industries have switched to the use of natural gas since the last period, reducing efficiently their energy cost.
We continue the investments while already in the first quarter of 2021 we have invested over 6.5 million for the network’s expansion. The consumers’ demand for the transition to the natural gas use is particularly increased, as it is a practical, safe, and environmentally friendly fuel. At the same time, we have entered a new era in our program, as we invest in the digitization of the network and all the operations of the Company. We are already installing smart meters and it is worth noting that in Farkadona, all the meters that will be installed will be smart. In this way we will be able to take the reading of the meter remotely and ensure the timely detection of leaks.
We are developing innovative, flexible and sustainable networks, which support not only natural gas as a transition fuel but also networks that are ready to receive renewable gases such as hydrogen and biomethane for the further reduction of the carbon footprint, contributing by this way to the achievement of the objectives set by the State for the upcoming years».
The Mayor of Farkadona, Mr. Spyridon Agnantis, thanked all the attendants for their presence and participation in a great effort, which will improve the quality of life in the Municipality. The integration of the Municipality in the distribution network of EDA THESS, is a project that will benefit all the involved parties, while with the support of the State, the natural gas will also reach to other areas of the municipality.
