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Green investment in Greece to reach unprecedented level by 2015: PM

24 October 2010 03:57 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. Investment in the development of a green economy in Greece was expected to reach an unprecedented level of 45 billion euros (62.67 billion U.S. dollars) by 2015, Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou told a forum in Athens Saturday, APA reports quoting Xinhua News Agency.

In 2009, investment in renewable energy sources in the country stood at 400 million euros (557.1 million dollars) but this was expected to triple by 2011 to 1.2 billion euros (1.67 billion dollars), Papandreou said.

"A year ago, we faced the prospect of bankruptcy and we managed to save Greece. Amidst a period of global economic crisis, a green economy represents hope, especially for our country," he said at the first Mediterranean Green Development Investors Forum (Med-GDIF).

The forum was organized by the European Investment Bank and the Institute for Climate and Energy Security (i4cense) and held under the auspices of the Office of the Greek Prime Minister.

It follows Friday’s official launch of the Mediterranean Climate Change Initiative in Athens by Papandreou and representatives of other countries of the region to address the challenge of climate change on a regional level.

The Mediterranean could be turned into a major energy hub of renewable energy sources which would be linked with the creation of thousands of jobs and new opportunities for investment, Papandreou said.

Regarding Greece, the Greek leader stressed that, beyond austerity measures to tackle the economic crisis, the Greek government had implemented bold structural reforms to boost the competitiveness of the national economy, not through the classic way of reducing salaries, but by promoting a green development model.