PPC: Energy corridor in south-eastern Europe with acquisitions in Romania-Bulgaria

PPC’s development prospects as presented by its president George Stassis to analysts in London focus on the energy market of Southeast Europe, mainly on acquisitions in Romania, Bulgaria (under consideration) and the energy corridors developed by upgrading the interconnections between the countries of the region.

According to the business plan, “in addition to the critical role in Greece and the strong presence in Romania, the strategic planning also includes development in Bulgaria and/or the wider region, where the Group aims to have 1.1GW of installed capacity by 2030.”

PPC is a leading company in the production, distribution and supply of electricity in Greece, while in Romania it is the largest supplier with 3 million customers. Moreover, it ranks second in distribution networks and is the largest producer of electricity from RES with 597-megawatt units.

Balkans’ synergies bring 50 million euros annually

“With its presence in different geographical areas and an expanded and mutually complementary RES portfolio of photovoltaic and wind farms, the PPC Group will succeed in spreading the risk by taking advantage of the different meteorological conditions in each region,” the company said. According to the presentation of the business plan, the benefit from synergies in the Balkans is estimated at 50 million euros per year.

The plan is supported by the strengthening of interconnections in the region as the Independent Power Transmission Operator (IPTO) implements or considers the extension of existing or the construction of new interconnections with all the countries on the northern borders of the country. Recently, the second interconnection with Bulgaria was put into operation, while discussions have also begun on the construction of a third one.

Cross-border electricity trade

According to the relevant data, the cross-border electricity trade in 2023 between Romania and Bulgaria totaled 1.5 terawatt hours (TWh), between Bulgaria and Greece 2.8 TWh and between Greece and Italy 1.3 TWh. A driving force for the energy flows in the interconnections are the significant price differences between the individual markets: the average price of electricity in Romania / Bulgaria in 2023 was 104 euros per megawatt hour, in Greece 119 euros and in Italy 127 euros. Higher electricity imports/exports have also had a direct benefit for the consumer as more expensive domestic sources are replaced by cheaper imports.