Greece’s attempt to establish a domestic offshore wind market has encountered a major legal complication after the Athens Administrative Court of Appeal revoked production licences for two pilot developments planned in the northern Aegean.
The ruling followed a challenge by the Municipality of Samothrace and affects fixed-bottom projects planned offshore Evros, northeast of the island. PPC is developing a scheme with stated capacity of 216 MW, while TERNA Energy and Motor Oil are promoting a second development of approximately 400 MW.
The projects are generally presented as a combined 600 MW pilot programme, although the individually stated capacities total 616 MW. The final installed capacity would depend on turbine selection, grid allocation and the configuration accepted through permitting.
Both projects were licensed before Greece adopted its National Offshore Wind Development Programme. They were subsequently incorporated into the national strategy as demonstration schemes and were allocated 600 MW of the government’s recently identified 2.35 GW offshore wind envelope.
Their importance extends beyond their direct generation capacity. The projects were intended to test permitting procedures, establish grid-connection arrangements and give Greek contractors, ports and service providers their first opportunity to participate in an offshore wind supply chain. They were also expected to support Greece’s target of developing approximately 1.3 GW of floating offshore wind by 2032.
The developers are expected to challenge the ruling before the Council of State, Greece’s highest administrative court. The projects have already secured access to transmission capacity, but grid reservation alone cannot compensate for an unresolved production licence and contested spatial approval.
Indicative capital requirements for 600-616 MW of fixed-bottom offshore wind in the northern Aegean could fall within a broad range of €1.8 billion to €2.5 billion, depending on water depth, foundation design, port infrastructure, grid works and financing costs. Annual operating expenditure could reach €55-85 million, while capacity factors of 40-48 per cent would imply generation of roughly 2.1-2.6 TWh a year.
A legal delay of 12-18 months could lower the equity return by approximately 1.5-3 percentage points through additional development spending, financing carry, delayed revenue and potential changes in turbine or construction pricing. A prolonged dispute could also require new environmental studies or alterations to project boundaries.
The court decision does not terminate the projects, but it changes their risk allocation. Environmental and municipal consent has moved from a development-stage issue to a central financing condition for Greece’s offshore wind programme.
