Greece Unveils €2.5 Billion Ten-Year Plan to Secure Water Supplies

Overview

• Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said the country must be ready for “the worst of possible scenarios” as drought pressures intensify in Attica, the islands and Thessaloniki.
• The package centers on reinforcing Athens’ reservoir system and expanding island desalination, including a new plant with 87.5 million cubic meters of annual capacity and network interconnections.
• Additional works include partial diversion of the Krikeliotis and Karpenisiotis rivers to the Evinos reservoir and new wells at Mavrosouvala, Ymittos and Kifisos providing about 150 million cubic meters per year.
• Officials report annual reserve losses of roughly 250 million cubic meters since 2022 alongside a 25% drop in rainfall and a 15% rise in evaporation, set against a 2.3°C increase in average summer temperatures since 1960.
• The environment minister warned Greece will face Southern Europe’s highest water stress after Cyprus, with more than half the population at risk, as experts also cite wasteful irrigation and high-consumption uses on islands.