BAKU, Azerbaijan, November 13. Greece is all in on the energy transition, said Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Prime Minister of Greece, as he delivered his national statement during the COP29 summit in Baku, Trend reports.
The PM called for a “smart green deal” to drive a balanced energy transition in Europe, urging leaders to consider both environmental and economic realities. “Our emissions are down 45% versus 2005. Lignite used to provide much more than 50% of our power generation. Its share today is just 6%. We now rely on wind and solar for almost half of our electricity. We are insulating our houses and building a carbon capture value chain for our industry,” he noted.
While stressing Greece’s commitment to sustainability, he highlighted challenges faced across Europe, where high energy costs and emissions taxes risk hindering competitiveness. “We cannot drive ourselves into industrial oblivion,” he cautioned.
Mitsotakis outlined four urgent priorities for Europe: acknowledge the trade-offs of the energy transition, promote regulatory flexibility, unify Europe’s energy market, and support industry’s adaptation to climate goals. He emphasized that “each country must choose its own ambitious path,” allowing new technologies to mature and enabling Europe to remain resilient in a rapidly changing world.