Risks, Obstacles and Challenges of the Electrical Energy Transition in Europe: Greece as a Case Study

Georgios Fotis (), Theodoros I. Maris and Valeri Mladenov
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Georgios Fotis: Centre for Energy Technologies, Aarhus University, Birk Centerpark 15, Innovatorium, 7400 Herning, Denmark
Theodoros I. Maris: Department of Digital Industry Technologies, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Euripus Complex, 34400 Psahna, Euboea, Greece
Valeri Mladenov: Department Fundamentals of Electrical Engineering, Technical University of Sofia, 8 Kliment Ohridski Blvd., Block 12, 1000 Sofia, Bulgaria

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 12, 1-31

Abstract: The European Union’s 2030 target of decreasing net greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% has resulted in a significant uptake of renewable energy sources (RESs) in the European power system, primarily wind and solar power, as well as the closure of conventional power plants that mostly used fossil fuels. The European Union’s members have accelerated the process of energy transition driven by climate change, and public authorities’ involvement in this process is impressive. The goal of this study is to present a broad overview of the existing challenges for the energy transition in Europe and how they can affect the reliability and stability of the interconnected power system in Europe and future investments, focusing especially on Greece. Unfortunately, this environmentally friendly transition is taking place without the required amount of investment in electrical energy storage technology, which raises the risk of a blackout due to the high predicted variability of RES. The gradual abandonment of conventional energy production units such as natural gas in the coming decades will intensify the problem of frequency regulation, which will become even more acute due to the particularly increased installed capacity in RESs across Europe and Greece. The European Power System, being partially unprepared for the energy transition, frequently faces a paradox: it rejects green power originating from high-RES production because of low demand, a lack of transmission line interconnections, or extremely low energy storage capacity. This paper examines all the prerequisites, including how the European electrical transmission system will be developed in the future and how new energy storage technologies will be used. Lastly, Greece’s energy future and potential risks associated with realizing the environmental goals of the European Green Deal is studied using a PESTEL analysis.

Keywords: electric grid; energy storage; European energy transition; PESTEL analysis; renewable energy sources targets (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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