Town of Skopelos ©see Imprint
| Location | Part of the Sporades islands in to the North-East of Greece |
| Area | 96 km² |
| Number of inhabitants | 4,960 |
| Climate | Mediterranean, with relatively mild, rainy winters and hot, sunny summers |
Skopelos is connected to the national transmission network and therefore its energy mix is identical with the international mix. In 2019, the Greek electricity generation mix was dominated by natural gas (36%) and coal (21.8%) while wind power served 15.2%, oil 9.6%, solar PV 8.3%, hydropower 8.3% and biomass 0.8% of the total generation.
Skopelos in co-operation with the other Sporades islands, Skiathos and Alonnisos, has applied for funding to New Energy Solutions Optimized for Islands facility (NESOI) to study the potential of exploitation of forest biomass for electricity and heating generation. Additionally, the municipality is promoting the energy upgrade of school buildings with the installation of rooftop solar PV panels and heat pumps as part of Skopelos’ green agenda.
The residents of the island of Skopelos are becoming more and more environmentally conscious and better informed about the role of renewable energies and their applications. The island of Skopelos hosted several information events to inform citizens on the potential of wind and solar on the island. The Sporades Islands Preservation Foundation, a local organization aiming at improving economic and living conditions of the islands, launched a crowdfunding program to finance the deployment of renewable technologies. Partner DAFNI (the Network of Sustainable Greek Islands), representing Skopelos in the ISLANDER project, supports this transition process.
Skopelos is connected with the mainland electricity network via six medium voltage (MV) cables totaling 28.7 MW capacity with the neighboring island of Skiathos. Skopelos is also connected with Alonnisos via two MV cables of 12.2 MW total capacity. However, due to the great length of the submarine cable connecting Skopelos with the mainland, it experiences often power outages. According to the 10-year development plan of the power transmission operator, a new cable and power substation of 150/20 kV will be commissioned by the end of 2021 to solve these outages.
The installed RES capacity includes 153 kW of residential rooftop solar PV and 56 kW of solar PV benefiting from the net metering scheme. The annual electricity demand for Skopelos is estimated at about 28 GWh. A power peak of about 9 MW is observed in summer due to high tourism activity and increased cooling demand.
Skopelos, represented by partner DAFNI, develops a replication plan to adapt the ISLANDER solutions tested on Borkum to the local context of the Sporades islands and Greek islands of the Aegean Sea. A small-scale physical replication project related to e-mobility will also be implemented on Skopelos.
Follow us