Press Releases / Announcements

Efforts to weaken the new Emissions Trading System for buildings and road transport (ETS2)—culminating in a one-year delay to its start—make parallel measures essential to ensure its fair and socially sustainable implementation. In this context, the European Commission—following interventions by civil society—has promoted the creation of an ETS2 Frontloading Facility through the European Investment Bank (EIB). This frontloading mechanism will allow Member States to gain early access to future revenues from the auctioning of emission allowances under ETS2 for buildings and road transport.

Greece is far behind the European Union average in the adoption of electric mobility. According to ACEA data, the share of new battery electric vehicles (BEVs) in the EU-27 (17.4%) was nearly three times higher than in Greece (6.17%), while the share of plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs) reached 9.4%, again exceeding the corresponding Greek figure (8.08%). For the first time, the combined share of these two low-emission vehicle categories in the EU-27 (26.8%) surpassed that of conventional petrol vehicles (26.6%).

The Green Tank voted in favor during the tenth written evaluation process conducted by the Hellenic Managing Authority (EYDAM) under the 2021–2027 Just Transition Development Program (JTDP). The submitted dossier included two projects. The first project concerns energy upgrade works for public and municipal buildings in the North and South Aegean regions, with a total budget of €10 million (€6.854 million for the North Aegean and €3.154 million for the South Aegean).

As part of the State of Climate in Greece for 2025, conducted by scientists from the Institute for Environmental Research and Sustainable Development at the National Observatory of Athens and organized by the Climatebook information hub, Nikos Mantzaris presented the results of the Green Tank analysis for the electricity generation sector.

A new scientific study examines the reasons why Greece’s system of protected areas continues to face serious challenges, despite repeated institutional reforms and improved administrative coordination in recent years.

The tenth issue of The Green Tank’s newsletter has been published, covering developments over the past six months related to the Just Transition of lignite regions in Greece and across Europe (July–December 2025).

1,747 energy communities, but only 18 new project applications in 6 months. Central Macedonia is the “champion” in electrified capacity, while in Western Macedonia for every 1 MW electrified, 3.6 MW are cancelled. The 1 GW “barrier” in self-generation was broken, however, from the ministerial decision on net billing (October 2024) to September 2025, only 16.5 MW of projects implementing the new mechanisms, were connected.

Despite the increase in electricity generation from Renewable Energy Sources (RES), Greece consistently remains among the most expensive countries in Europe in the day-ahead electricity market (DAM). According to a new analysis by The Green Tank, which also compares Greece with Portugal, the main reasons are the country’s growing dependence on fossil gas and the lack of energy storage infrastructure.

On the occasion of the 24th Meeting of the Contracting Parties to the Barcelona Convention (COP24), The Green Tank co-organized and moderated a side event titled “From Science to Action: Strengthening Conservation and Cooperation for Priority Mediterranean Species and Habitats” that was held on 4 December 2025 at the St. Regis in Cairo, Egypt. The event brought together leading scientific initiatives, regional institutions, and policy actors working to advance marine conservation across the Mediterranean.

Greece is ranked 30th in this year’s Climate Change Performance Index (#CCPI) 2026, among 63 countries, marking an 8-place drop compared to 2025. According to the ranking published today at COP30 in Brazil, Greece remains a medium performer in greenhouse gas emissions, renewable energy, and energy use, while climate policy is once again rated as low.

Despite being the only region to cut emissions in 2023–2024, proposed changes to the EU #ETS2 risk increasing emissions and reducing revenues needed for the green transition. Environmental NGOs and think tanks — including The Green Tank — sent a letter to Commissioner Hoekstra.

In a letter addressed to 19 Environment Ministers, Climate, Net Zero and Clean Growth Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra announced on 21 October 2025 the European Commission’s intention to amend the rules governing the Market Stability Reserve (MSR). The 19 Ministers had co-signed a joint non-paper in June on price uncertainties in the new Emissions Trading System for buildings and road transport (ETS2).

The SAvE Whales project (System for the Avoidance of ship-strikes with Endangered Whales) has successfully completed its second year of implementation, marking significant progress in developing and testing a complementary and innovative early warning system to prevent ship collisions with sperm whales in the Kythira Strait.

The Green Tank actively participated in the Annual General Assembly of the Coalition of Energy Communities (DESMI), held on Saturday, 18 October 2025. The assembly focused on reviewing the achievements of the past year, outlining next steps, and discussing the strategic direction of the DESMI coalition. Participants also explored how energy communities can expand their activities by strengthening citizens’ active participation in the energy transition.