Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Friday hailed deepening energy cooperation with the United States, saying Greece is emerging as a key regional hub for natural gas and renewable power, a day after Exxon Mobil signed a deal to explore offshore Greek waters for natural gas.
Speaking at the sixth meeting of the Partnership for Transatlantic Energy Cooperation (P-TEC) in Athens, Mitsotakis said Greece and the US share “an enduring bond based on a similar set of strategic objectives,” including the push to secure affordable, geopolitically independent energy supplies and accelerate the shift to cleaner power sources.
“This is not just a partnership based on commercial transactions,” he said. “It is an enduring bond… We both want to secure energy sources and critical raw materials that are free from geopolitical baggage.”
Mitsotakis praised Thursday’s agreement between Exxon Mobil, Energean and Helleniq Energy, saying it would lead to Greece’s first offshore exploration well in 40 years. He said the project reflected Greece’s determination to tap its own resources as Europe seeks to replace Russian gas supplies.
“Europe will need natural gas for many, many years to come,” Mitsotakis said. “It makes just so much sense for the United States to look at Greece as an entry point for American gas to serve the energy needs of an entire region.”
The deal, announced Thursday, expands US energy interests in the eastern Mediterranean just as Washington seeks to bolster alternative gas routes to Europe following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Mitsotakis said Greece has transformed its energy landscape since 2019, phasing out lignite coal and ramping up renewables, which now cover more than half of its electricity demand. In 2024, he noted, Greece became a net exporter of electricity for the first time, after years of imports.
At the same time, Greece has invested heavily in natural gas infrastructure, commissioning new gas-fired plants, expanding storage, and launching projects such as the Alexandroupoli floating LNG terminal and new pipeline interconnections with Bulgaria.
“Most of the gas that now comes into Greece does not stay in Greece – it is sent to third countries,” Mitsotakis said. “We have become a provider of energy security for the entire southeastern European region.”
He reiterated Greece’s commitment to the “Vertical Gas Corridor,” a gas transportation scheme linking Greece with Ukraine, Moldova, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Romania and Hungary.
Mitsotakis said Europe’s ban on Russian gas “must be enforced,” warning that Moscow’s gas should not “get into Europe through the back door via Turkey.”
The prime minister also called for a “cost-effective” European energy transition, arguing that policies must balance decarbonization with affordability amid persistent inflation pressures.
“We must be ruthlessly technologically neutral,” Mitsotakis said. “We cannot pick winners. It’s up to the markets to lead this innovation push forward.”
Mitsotakis concluded by highlighting the “deepening strategic partnership” between Athens and Washington, noting that this week’s P-TEC meeting drew “the maximum number of American officials ever present in Greece.”
“Our relationship is getting so much stronger and deeper every year,” he said. “Greece is ready to play a leadership role in the Balkans and southeastern Europe.”