Greece is one step closer to the top in terms of the attractiveness of investment opportunities in Renewable Energy Sources, according to the latest edition of the EY Renewable Energy Country Attractiveness Index (RECAI).

The country improved its position among the leading markets for renewable energy (RE), as it moved up to 2nd from 3rd place in EY's adjusted RE Index, which examines the performance of countries adjusted according to the size of their GDP. At the same time, Greece moved back to 16th place in the overall index, up from 18th place six months ago.

EY: Greece is the 2nd most attractive country in the world for renewable energy investment relative to its GDP-1

The index assesses the world's top 40 economies and ranks them in terms of the attractiveness of renewable energy investment opportunities. The GDP-adjusted index gives a more objective picture of reality, reflecting the performance of countries relative to their economic size, as the core index, by its nature, favours the world's strongest economies, which, by virtue of their size, have the largest renewable energy markets. 

The report notes that installed renewable energy capacity in Greece has doubled in the last four years, with green energy now accounting for 50% of electricity generation. It adds that high energy prices and government support are driving the creation of local power generation communities. 

The report also comments on the improvement in Greece's ranking in terms of bilateral Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs), with the country climbing from 26th to 21st place in the index. As noted, although the number of relevant agreements in Greece remains relatively small, the emerging market for corporate PPAs is showing signs of growth. Onshore wind is not as prevalent in this market as solar energy projects that make the most of the sun. As in many other markets, large industrial and IT groups dominate the list of buyers, but interestingly, as the report notes, PPAs were also signed by organisations in the wider public sector.

Commenting on the report's findings for Greece, Mr Tasos Iosifidis, Partner, Head of Corporate Strategy and Transaction Advisory Services at EY Greece and Head of the Energy & Utilities Sector, said: "Greece remains for the third consecutive semester in the top three positions of the GDP-adjusted renewable energy index and the top twenty of EY's overall RECAI index, with improved performance. This ranking confirms the attractiveness of the renewable energy market in our country, the significant progress that has been made and the positive prospects for attracting investments that will accelerate the green transition of our economy. Having addressed many of the problems of the regulatory framework, key priorities today are strengthening the grid, shifting to offshore wind and investing in storage systems."