Crisis Hit Greece Pins Hope On Renewables

Greece will be facing a huge economic challenge in 2012, when the EUR 110 billio bailout loan from the EU and IMF is to expire. The country needs to create a growing economy and employment opportunities if it is to be able to start paying off debts.

As part of this effort, Greece is planning to invest about EUR 12 billion into clean energy and environment projects, hoping to attract a further EUR 32 billion from private funds, to boost the economy and create 192,000 jobs, according to the Environment Minister Tina Birblii.

Projects will range from renewable energy development to town planning, with EUR 7 billion from the initial public investment amount going to projects such as urban subways, parks and pedestrian areas in Athens.

About EUR 14 billion in private investments is expected for energy projects including new natural gas pipelines and storage terminals.

Even though the country has abundant wind and solar energy potential, only about 4% of the total power generated in Greece in 2009 came from these sources (if you've ever been on vacation on the Greek islands, you may have noticed the wind blows eastwards almost all the time). Greece's power portfolio still heavily relies on fossil fuel energy facilities