Reducing indifference to the common resources that Greek citizens pay for is intended to government sector countries to solve energy crisis. It is characteristic that in 2021 the state spent 700 million euros to pay for it. electricity what is spending. This year, and although there are still four months left until the end of the year, the cost is estimated to have exceeded 1 billion euros. “When we mention that the cost of a kilowatt-hour has increased by 12-14 times, it’s like saying that we pay 10 euros per liter of gasoline,” Deputy Minister Theodoros Skylakakis said during a presentation of government measures to achieve a reduction in public consumption . spending sector in the energy sector.

FROM joint ministerial decision (JMA) which was released two months ago, the government requested a savings of 10% from the entire public sector, its institutions and local government organizations of A’ and B’ degrees to cope with the energy crisis, as well as reduce energy costs for the state budget.

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However, yesterday the Minister for the Environment and Energy Kostas Skrekas, Deputy Finance Minister Theodoros Skilakakis and Interior Minister Makis Voridis went even further by announcing specific rewards and penalties for meeting austerity targets, given that the provisions of the CPA have not been implemented. In particular, despite the fact that the appointment of an energy manager was provided for all government agencies, out of a total of 2495 agencies, only 221 appointed a manager in accordance with the requirements. The Minister of Internal Affairs noted that 1,800 of the total number of entities are PTAs and entities associated with local governments, of which only 90 have proceeded with the registration of an energy manager.

Mr. Voridis specified that large municipalities have stepped up, but declined to name agencies that have shown weakness. “We will be persistent,” the Home Secretary stressed as he presented the measures, adding: “Something relatively easy is being asked to be done.” However, while austerity measures should be implemented “from yesterday”, as Mr. Skilakakis characteristically pointed out, the way to measure success and failure is somewhat unclear.

The respective ministers yesterday announced concrete measures to reward and punish the achievement of the goals.

It is worth noting that the percentage of savings will be measured with the base year in 2019 based on the comparison of consumption across accounts. Characteristically, the mayor, who contacted KEDE, said that by 2019 he had replaced street lighting lamps with LEDs. “Then I reduced my consumption, and now I have to reduce it even more?” How;” he asked. “Isn’t this way of assessing unfair?”

As the Deputy Minister of Finance stated, “until the enterprise implements KYA – has not appointed an energy manager or is not fulfilling its duties – its applications for support from the regular budget or special reserve will not be evaluated.”

• As far as municipalities are concerned, 10% energy savings is a mandatory target, especially for street lighting. Until this goal is achieved, the state will not provide financial support to municipalities to cover increased energy costs. The state will not give money for inflated bills in the second half of 2022, as it was in the first half, Mr. Skilakakis specified. Street lighting is paid for by reimbursable contributions from citizens. If the municipality does not want to reduce its accounts with savings, then it must pay and therefore cannot ask for help, the Deputy Minister of Finance explained.

• There is a surcharge for all utilities (which employees and managers receive), adding a target of 10% savings in electricity consumption in the last quarter of the year (compared to the corresponding period last year) .

• Those services that achieve 15% savings in energy consumption, ie. 5% above the set target, will receive the corresponding money in their budget for the next year.

It has been announced by the Ministry of the Interior that services that do not achieve the savings goal will not be included in the recruitment or mobility process.

No “blind” application

As announced, next Monday, September 12, the Elektra public buildings energy modernization program will begin, totaling 640 million euros. It includes interventions concerning, tentatively, the building envelope, various systems of electromechanical (H/M) installations, as well as interventions that are proven to contribute to the energy modernization of buildings, including static reinforcement where necessary.

However, the EPA includes energy conservation and energy efficiency measures in government buildings and facilities that can be implemented without the need for major interventions.

• Annual maintenance of heating-cooling systems and air conditioners.

• Determination of the internal temperature of buildings in summer at 27 and in winter at 19 degrees Celsius.

• Turn off cooling/heating in places and at times when there are no employees.

• Turn off office equipment and lighting in places and at times when there are no employees.

• Use of night ventilation in summer and adequate shading of buildings, where possible, depending on the season.

Often simple logic is enough. The space that remains closed does not need to be heated. As long as there is daylight and there is sunlight, there is no need to turn on the central lighting. Heated pools in sports facilities must be closed when not in use. The Ministry of Finance emphasizes that the implementation of measures will not be “blind”, but will take into account the characteristics of each institution.

At the same time, it is planned to create teams with dedicated energy analysts who will train and inform employees who have taken on the duties of an energy manager. The experts will also be able to support the manager to explore the possibilities of implementing more efficient energy saving systems.

Public buildings will be tested on a pilot basis in terms of their energy consumption so that savings solutions can be implemented. At the same time, an inquiry service for energy managers will operate.

Dissatisfaction with KEDE persecution of municipalities

The President of KEDE (Central Union of Greek Municipalities) and Mayor of Trikala, Dimitris Papastergiou, expresses dissatisfaction with the government targeting municipalities on measures that have not been taken to save energy. “The image of the municipalities is the same as the image of the Greek state,” he emphasizes. “We are not better, but we are not worse either,” he notes.

Asked why many municipalities have not started appointing an energy manager as defined by the KYA, Mr. Papastergiou says the OTAs are continuing the process. “Some may not have declared it because they should have, but the main issue is the economy and how it will be done,” he adds. The President of KEDE also notes that it is necessary to clarify the conditions under which the savings will be measured: “This year I opened new schools and the second swimming pool of the municipality began to operate. So how will savings compare to my consumption in 2019?” he wonders.

However, at yesterday’s meeting between the board of KEDE and the relevant ministers, there was an atmosphere of consensus. The main topic of discussion, of course, was the question of the energy crisis and how to deal with it, as well as issues related to the financing of municipalities.

LED lamp

Mr. Grigoris Constandellos, Mayor of Vari-Voula-Voulagmeni, emphasizes that the introduction of administrative controls to comply with the requirements of state bodies and municipalities and implement energy saving measures will not achieve what a policy aimed at saving could bring. As he notes, only 30 municipalities out of 335 have started to replace their lamps with LEDs, which would bring big savings. The main reason for this is that many municipalities are not in a position to obtain adequate funding, and executing the project through an EPC (Energy Use Contract) with a private supplier has “much more bureaucracy and very little benefit for the municipality”. began on Monday, from 12 am to 6 am, to reduce the brightness of street lights by 25% on main roads and 35% on secondary roads.

And other municipalities have also started to implement austerity measures, such as the municipality of Papagu-Cholargu, which turns off the lights in public buildings and fountains of the municipality from 9 pm.

Pools

The Municipality of Kallithea covers the public swimming pool when not in use to limit heat loss and achieve energy savings. It is worth noting that swimming pools consume a lot of energy to heat water, as a result of which the cost of their operation has increased dramatically. For example, last year the municipality of Trikala paid 10,000 euros per month for the operation of a public swimming pool, and this year it is 20,000 euros per month.