Greece sets date for 500MW new renewable energy auction

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email
Image credit: Hans Renier / Unsplash

Solar developers will have a chance this spring to compete at a new renewable auction in Greece, the latest in a country aiming to take installed PV capacity near the 8GW mark by 2030.

On Thursday (30 January 2020), Greek energy watchdog RAE published the terms and conditions of its newest technology-neutral tender, slated in principle to take place on 2 April this year.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Try Premium for just $1

  • Full premium access for the first month at only $1
  • Converts to an annual rate after 30 days unless cancelled
  • Cancel anytime during the trial period

Premium Benefits

  • Expert industry analysis and interviews
  • Digital access to PV Tech Power journal
  • Exclusive event discounts

Or get the full Premium subscription right away

Or continue reading this article for free

The auction will award feed-in premia to a maximum of 500MW of renewable projects, with the exact capacity set to be determined by RAE at a later date.

Sponsors of solar projects larger than 20MW and wind ventures above the 50MW mark will be able to table their applications in February, followed by a month-long evaluation by RAE.

Bidding itself will start at ceiling prices of €61.32/MWh (US$67.64/MWh), down from the €64.72/MWh (US$71.4/MWh) RAE set last year for the previous technology-neutral auction

The eventual contract winners will have to make sure projects are linked to the grid within 36 months after the auction concludes, according to the documents released by RAE.

Foreign eyes follow Greece’s PV march to 7.7GW

Greece’s auctioning push is meant to drive progress with policy targets for 2030, including a goal for renewables to account for 35% of final energy use and a 7.7GW installed PV capacity target.

The Southern European state – currently home to 2.6GW-plus of installed PV – succeeded in attracting bidders to last year’s technology-neutral auction, held in April 2019.

The 600MW tender drew 637.78MW in solar and wind bids and ended up awarding 437.78MW, with solar securing six of all seven contracts.

Separate solar-specific tenders, targeting 500kW-20MW projects, have triggered a more muted response. The 300MW auction of 1 July 2019 attracted 200.26MW in bids, of which 142.883MW was then contracted.

Undersubscription prevailed again at the following PV-only auction of December 2019, with the 287.11MW initially on offer followed by 148.64MW of bids and 105MW of awarded contracts. 

Attention to the market is growing among foreign PV players. Moves over the past year include a German firm DWH's purchase of a stake in a local developer and plans by investor NextEnergy to acquire projects via a new international fund.

The prospects and challenges of solar's new era in Europe and beyond will take centre stage at Solar Media's Solar Finance & Investment Europe (London, 5-6 February) and Large Scale Solar Europe 2020 (Lisbon, on 31 March-1 April 2020).

2 December 2025
Málaga, Spain
Understanding PV module supply to the European market in 2026. PV ModuleTech Europe 2025 is a two-day conference that tackles these challenges directly, with an agenda that addresses all aspects of module supplier selection; product availability, technology offerings, traceability of supply-chain, factory auditing, module testing and reliability, and company bankability.
10 March 2026
Frankfurt, Germany
The conference will gather the key stakeholders from PV manufacturing, equipment/materials, policy-making and strategy, capital equipment investment and all interested downstream channels and third-party entities. The goal is simple: to map out PV manufacturing out to 2030 and beyond.

Read Next

September 16, 2025
Sunotec has launched Sunotec Nordic to spearhead solar and hybrid renewable project development across the Nordic region.
September 16, 2025
Two of the major European solar trade associations, the European Solar Manufacturing Council (ESMC) and SolarPower Europe (SPE), have called for EU policymakers to take measures supporting European solar manufacturing.
September 11, 2025
The PEARL Consortium has developed perovskite solar cells with carbon electrodes with a conversion efficiency of 21.6%.
September 11, 2025
The EBRD has launched a new programme to improve access to green financing and support energy investments such as renewable power projects.
September 10, 2025
A project claimed to be Germany’s largest agriPV plant has been commissioned in the north-east of the country.
September 9, 2025
The average price of solar modules sold in Europe fell marginally between July and August, while buyers’ confidence remained steady.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Solar Media Events
September 30, 2025
Seattle, USA
Solar Media Events
October 1, 2025
London, UK
Solar Media Events
October 2, 2025
London,UK
Solar Media Events
October 7, 2025
Manila, Philippines
Solar Media Events
October 7, 2025
San Francisco Bay Area, USA