Authors: Ioanna Kastelli, Petros Dimas

Title: Industrial policy for green transition: The case of Greece.

Abstract

Today the Greek economy is facing the double challenge to address energy challenges and build resilient industrial systems that deal with environmental risks. In this context, achieving green energy transition becomes increasingly complex, dealing with challenges that do not relate only to market failures but mostly to systemic and structural issues.

The purpose of this paper is to address industrial policy for green transition in Greece with particular emphasis on the “greening” of the national energy production as well as the transition from fossil fuels to renewables in the country’s industrial activities and link this shift to the structural transformation of the Greek industrial sector. We investigate i)if the shift towards a green production and consumption model that in the recent years became a policy priority, can be considered as an opportunity for industrial transformation, ii)under what conditions and what are the enablers and constraints and iii)what type of industrial policy is required to transform the Greek production and consumption model?

Our main argument is that the same persistent structural and institutional deficiencies combined with socio-political dynamics that determined the failure of the country to manage the financial crisis of 2008 could block the process towards a sustainable future.