New Brussels warning on Crete power project

The European Commission has sent a fresh warning to Greece over the crucial project of the electrical interconnection of Crete with Attica, which Athens has unilaterally conceded to state grid operator ADMIE.

The Greek Energy Ministry and the country's Regulatory Authority for Energy (RAE) received the latest letter from the internal energy market director of the Commission's Directorate-General for Energy, Klaus-Dieter Borchardt, on Thursday. In the letter, the European official clearly states that the process used to promote the interconnection will not secure its entry into the subsidized cluster of Projects of Common Interest (PCI).

Brussels points out that if the RAE decision continues to apply, the Crete-Attica section will only be considered a national project, with economic and regulatory consequences.

The Commission rejects RAE's arguments for a two-year...