On 29th and 30th of June 2024 the Investment Conference, focusing on Egypt’s relations with the European Union was held at the International Conference Center “Al Manara” in Cairo, Egypt. The Conference was an important first milestone after signing of the strategic partnership between Egypt and the European Union and was characterized by the participation of high-ranking government and European officials, executives of financial institutions, as well as major international companies and investors.

The event was honored with the presence of the President of the Arab Republic of Egypt, Abdel Fattah El-Sisi , as well as the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.

At this conference, Copelouzos Group had a significant and successful presence. The Founder of the Group, Mr. Dimitris Copelouzos, who attended the Conference, was invited and participated in the “closed” meeting / Roundtable Discussion with the two Presidents, President El – Sisi and President Ursula von der Leyen, which was attended by a very limited number of representatives from the European Union. Mr. D. Copelouzos had the honor of being the only Greek businessman who participated in this meeting, representing the Greek business community, highlighting the importance of the projects developed by the Group for Egypt and Europe.

Also, the CEO of the Renewable Sources and Energy Storage Business Unit of the Copelouzos Group & CEO of ELICA, which develops the Egypt-Greece GREGY electrical interconnection project, Mr. Ioannis Karydas, was invited to the discussion on Renewable Energy Sources, where he presented the GREGY and highlighted its importance, not only for Egypt and Greece, but also for Europe in the effort to achieve decarbonization, zero emissions and energy security and underlined the alignment of the project with the European Union’s strategy for a faster transition to green energy.

The Minister of Electricity and Renewable Energy of Egypt, Dr Mohamed Shaker, the Director General of Energy (DG ENERGY) of the European Commission Ms. Ditte Jul Jørgensen, the Director General for Neighborhood and Enlargement (DGNEAR) of the European Commission Mr. Gert Jan Koopman, as well as other high-ranked invitees participated in the panel.

In this context, Mr. Karydas emphasized the importance of GREGY in order for Europe to decarbonize its energy mix faster and diversify its sources of energy supply and to accelerate the electrification of its economy, utilizing the rich “green” potential and the available lands of Egypt. In his statement, Mr. Karydas underlined the multiple benefits that will arise from GREGY, which will not only be energy and environmental, but also socio-economic, with the creation of a large number of jobs and business opportunities, with the benefit of consumers in Greece and Europe with the integration of energy markets and the transfer of green energy at competitive prices.

As he pointed out, GREGY, in addition to the significant energy, environmental and economic benefits it will have for Greece and the wider region, is a particularly important geopolitical project and the cornerstone for the creation of North-South corridors and the transfer of green energy.
GREGY ‘S ID Project : A “green ecosystem”

• The Greece-Egypt electrical interconnection is a project included in the 1st PCI/PMI list of the European Union.
• The flagship project conceived and designed by the Copelouzos Group and the Group’s holding company ELICA, will connect Egypt with mainland Greece with a submarine cable with a capacity of 3,000 MW and a length of approximately 950 km .
• It will replace 4.5 bcm of natural gas per year, reducing CO2 emissions by 10 million tonnes per year.
• The green and competitively priced energy that the interconnection will transfer from Egypt to Greece will be produced by 9.5 GW of Renewable Energy Sources that will be built and operated by Copelouzou Group in Egypt.
• Part of the electricity that will be transported with GREGY from Egypt will be transported to European Union countries.
• Significant benefits for the Greek Economy and Greek Industry from GREGY will arise.

Copelouzos Group, with the strategically important projects it develops, was once again at the center of developments and international processes, transforming the vision of a green economy into a landmark project for the N.A. Mediterranean and Europe.