HACCI WA members met last month at QV1 Perth’s conference centre to hear from a number of speakers regarding Greece’s emergence from its financial crisis to become one of the fastest growing economies in Europe; and a leader in energy reform.
The ‘Back to Business’ event heard from Macquarie Group’s Senior Vice President Liam Auer, sharing his views on Greece as an attractive investment destination.
Speaking to attendees via Zoom from London, Auer provided members with an overview of Macquarie’s assessment of Greece, which led to the organisation’s current 49 per cent ownership of the Greek electricity utility provider.
Macquarie’s Senior VP also elaborated on the firm’s plans to invest further into renewable sources of energy as well as the pursuit of other privatization projects in the Hellenic Republic.
The audience was reportedly captivated hearing a senior international banking executive speak of Greece’s regulatory, tax and employment law reforms; complemented by a reduction in bureaucracy and a renewal of the country’s banking system.
But his admission that Greece’s response to the European energy crisis last year was one of the best he’d seen across Europe, was perhaps the most astonishing observation shared with attendees.
Mrs Georgia Karasiotou, Consul of Greece in Perth confirmed that Greece’s revised 2030 goal for energy produced from renewable sources is set at 80 per cent; amounting to a total of 28 gigawatts (GW) of production capacity by that date, up from the current figure of 10 GW.
HACCI WA members also heard from Woodside Energy’s Vice President of renewables and power Sam Bartholomaeus about the global shift towards renewables, a new energy paradigm.
Bartholomaeus also spoke about the Southern Green Hydrogen megaproject in New Zealand, while mentioning the accomplishments of South Australia; commonly cited globally as an outstanding example with renewables meeting 70 per cent of the state’s energy demands.
The talks closed off with an economic review and forecast courtesy from Samuel Clark, a private banker at Macquarie; noting that while indicators point to an upcoming recession, markets and consumers are not behaving accordingly.
