DESFA

PROJECT DIRECTED BY Sandra Trzepacz

WRITTEN BY Romana Moares

Maria Rita Galli, CEO, DESFA

DESFA vessels entering port

Powering Greece’s Future

Natural gas has been and will remain one of the core energy sources. It is Earth’s cleanest hydrocarbon, and will continue to play an important role to support Europe’s energy transition in the years to come. In Greece, the company responsible for securing liquefied natural gas regassification and transmission toward millions of homes and businesses, as well as ensuring the country’s security of supply, is DESFA, a company with strong roots in Europe’s energy landscape.

The Hellenic Gas Transmission System Operator (DESFA) S.A. was established in 2007 and is responsible for the operation, management, utilisation and development of the Greek Natural Gas System and its interconnections, in a technically sound and economically efficient way, in order to best serve its users with safety, reliability and adequacy.

In addition to the transmission system, measuring approximately 1,500 km of high-pressure pipelines in operation, connecting the grid to four different entry points (Kipi, Sidirokastro, Nea Mesimvria, Agia Triada), the company also operates the Revithoussa LNG Terminal, which is located on the islet of Revithoussa, 45 km west of Athens. Revithoussa is the only terminal in Greece that receives LNG cargoes, temporarily stores and regasifies LNG, supplying the NNGT system with natural gas from diversified supply sources. DESFA’s CEO, Maria Rita Galli, explains that in 2018, a consortium of European investors, consisting of the three TSOs of Italy, Spain and Belgium (Snam, Enagas and Fluxys) acquired 66%

DESFA

of the company’s capital, with the 34% remaining to the Hellenic Republic.

“This means that the company, apart from the regulated services it provides, is increasingly active in the provision of services to third parties, offering its know-how and competence to companies, especially when it comes to the operation and maintenance of third-party infrastructure.”

Specifically in Greece, DESFA has been assigned with the maintenance of the Greek section of the TAP pipeline, the high-pressure pipeline that connects Azerbaijan via Turkey to Greece, Albania and Italy. Services expansion has been not only domestic. In the course of the last two years, DESFA was awarded a major contact for the operation of one of the largest regasification terminals in the world, the newly commissioned KIPIC LNG Import terminal in Kuwait, with eight liquefied gas storage tanks, each with a capacity of 225,000m3. Despite the challenges of the Covid-19 restrictions, DESFA has already a team of 100 people working on the operation and maintenance of the terminal in Kuwait.

Expanding to serve

DESFA has a large-scale investment plan in place, to further expand the natural gas network in Greece, in particular to cover the western part of the country where lignite power plants traditionally covered the electricity and heat demands of the region.

“We are making a huge investment to expand our reach and to deliver natural gas to the western parts of the market, as well as to increase the capacity of the system to meet growing demand, and accommodate large flows of gas, coming from different directions,” says Ms Galli. DEWSFA gas grid will expand by 20% by 2026, connecting new entry points and new neighbouring countries such as North Macedonia and will further enable the transit of LNG imported in the Revithoussa terminal to the northern Balkan countries, thus supporting also these countries’ diversification of sources and security of supply. “ We are making a huge

investment to expand our reach and to deliver natural gas to the

western parts of the market. “

Ms Galli points out that the company has also started to invest in natural gas infrastructure through partnerships. “In December 2021, we concluded the acquisition of an equity participation of 20% as one of five shareholders with equal stakes in an important project, the Alexandroupolis floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU), which is located in the northeast part of the country.”

The construction and operation of the Alexandroupolis FSRU, to be operational by the end of 2023, will further contribute to the energy security, liquidity and diversification of the country and the entire south-eastern Europe region, strengthening the strategic role of Greece and offering alternative sources and routes for the supply of natural gas in the area.

About the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP)

TAP transports natural gas from the giant Shah Deniz field in the Azerbaijani sector of the Caspian Sea to Europe. The 878 km long pipeline connects with the Trans Anatolian Pipeline (TANAP) at the Turkish-Greek border in Kipoi, crosses Greece and Albania and the Adriatic Sea, before coming ashore in Southern Italy.

TAP will facilitate gas supplies to South Eastern European countries through prospective interconnectors. In particular, Bulgaria will be able to cover up to 33% of its total gas demand through TAP after the completion of the Interconnector Greece Bulgaria (IGB). TAP’s exits in Greece and Albania, together with the landfall in Italy provide multiple opportunities for further transport of gas from Azerbaijan to the wider European markets.

As a key part of the Southern Gas Corridor, TAP is strategically and economically important to Europe andessential in providing reliable access to a new source of natural gas. TAP plays a significant role in boosting Europe’s energy security, supply diversification, as well as its decarbonisation objectives.

Since the start of commercial operations at the end of 2020, TAP has transported more than 10 billion cubic meters (bcm) of natural gas to Europe.

TAP’s shareholding is comprised of BP (20%), SOCAR (20%), Snam (20%), Fluxys (19%), Enagás (16%) and Axpo (5%).

www.tap-ag.com www.twitter.com/tap_pipeline

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DESFA

Hydrogen ready

The company is actively participating in the debates on how natural gas, specifically in Greece, can contribute to the achievement of the decarbonisation targets. Recently, DESFA has submitted a proposal in the context of Important Projects of Common European Interest (IPCEI) for the development of a European “Hydrogen Technologies and Systems” value chain, relating to Greece’s readiness to accept and transport increasing percentages of hydrogen blended into natural gas.

“We participate in many European associations and initiatives including the European Hydrogen Backbone, Europe’s hydrogen infrastructure needed to achieve its climate and energy objectives. Last year, we developed a detailed strategy for the gradual introduction of green gases, assessing how our network can progressively accommodate new gases being first blended with natural gas and progressively moving to the future of pure hydrogen or other renewable gases,” says Ms Galli. DESFA has already taken significant steps in this direction, as all new pipelines that are under development have been designed to transport hydrogen as well. One specific project is of major importance - the 163 km West Macedonia pipeline, which will be the first high-pressure transmission gas pipeline in Greece and one of the first in Europe certified to transport up to 100% hydrogen. Looking ahead, Ms Galli affirmed that the company will continue to promote the key role of natural gas infrastructure in the energy transition, the strengthening of Greece’s role as an energy hub, as well as focusing on implementing technologies that move towards climate neutrality.

DESFA

Under sound leadership

A nuclear engineer by background, Ms Galli is a recognised expert in her field, having assumed various roles within international business development for major energy companies over the course of her professional life.

She was Executive Vice President Business Development & Asset Management at Snam, one of the world’s leading energy infrastructure operators and one of Italy’s largest listed companies. Working for almost 20 years in Eni, the Italian Oil & Gas company, she participated from the very beginning in the process of liberalisation of the European gas market, and its transformation from the national monopolistic systems to a fully integrated single pan-European platform for commercial operation. Last but not least, she also led the acquisition process of DESFA that was concluded in 2018 and was the Chairman of SENFLUGA Energy Holdings S.A., DESFA’s majority shareholder.

Speaking about the value of responsibility in corporate governance, Ms Galli stressed the importance of incorporating ESG principles in DESFA’s strategy. She herself is very active in matters of diversity and inclusion, and highlighted the power that diversity generates in every organization: “Encouraging young women to pursue fields such as science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) is important in order to break some biases and promote their participation in traditionally male-dominated fields such as energy. Being an engineer myself, I only hope to be able to represent a role model for young women who wish to pursue a career in engineering and energy and as a company to be able to contribute proactively in promoting the role of young engineers and scientists in our organisation.”

www.desfa.gr

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