Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis put forth the issue of delinking natural gas prices from those of electricity, during his meeting with European Investment Bank (EIB) President Werner Hoyer in Athens on Monday.
For Greece to achieve this, he added, it will need European support; failing that, he noted, the country would need to rely on its own state coffers, “which would burden the state budget” and encourage populist parties to use the public’s anger about the cost of living.
The premier said that EU member states should not be left each to its own in dealing with the consequences of the current energy crisis.
Hoyer told Mitsotakis that despite all the difficulties in 2021, it was one of the better years for EIB in Greece. He added that he hoped Greece’s experience with the EIB was also good. The EIB head noted however that a short-term problem does not need long-term funding, which is what the investment bank offers, therefore it needs creative and smart solutions in order to be able to help.
He also briefed Mitsotakis on EIB’s emergency fund for Ukraine, and underlined that the financial organization is ready to provide additional financial aid towards minimizing the impact of the war on Greece.
SOURCE; AMNA
