RIYADH — As part of the European Union, Greece has also committed to make Europe the first climate-neutral continent until 2050, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Monday evening, speaking at the Middle East Green Initiative in Riyadh.

“The most significant of these initiatives is assuring that electricity produced from coal will stop the latest by 2028,” Mitsotakis said, while the country is also expending efforts to increase the rate of renewable energy sources.

“We hope to be one of the first Mediterranean countries to introduce a specific framework for the production of electric power through offshore wind parks in our country, and we hope to have the related legislative document ready for public consultation within the following weeks. Our hope is to have 2GW of offshore wind energy, as part of the mix of producing electric power by 2030,” he noted, adding that the plans call for over 25 billion euros in investments to achieve green transition.

The Greek premier also revealed that “if there is interest in exporting hydrogen to Europe, Greece will be the first country to welcome these hydrogen exports and will guarantee they are transported to the European market,” the premier added.

Efforts will also focus on encouraging shipowners to lead the reduction in greenhouse gases in the shipping sector, as “Greece controls 50% of the commercial fleet of Europe”, while the country also has tremendous opportunities in turning its numerous islands climate neutral, with ongoing pilot programs, he said.

The East Mediterranean and the Middle East region is the cradle of civilization and more effort should be placed on studying the repercussions of climate change on cultural heritage as well, he said. “It is an issue we can join forces on, and think creatively how to protect cultural heritage from the negative fallout of climate change,” Mitsotakis added.