On 15 March 2025, Greece’s Minister of Environment and Energy, Theodoros Skylakakis, handed over his mandate to Stavros Papastavrou.
Mr Papastavrou is an attorney-at-law with postgraduate studies at Harvard Law School. He has worked for more than three decades as a legal advisor in the private sector, specializing in corporate law and capital markets, both in Washington and Athens. He was appointed Head of the Prime Minister’s Office for European Affairs and International Relations and served as the chief negotiator of the Greek state with European partners and the International Monetary Fund from 2012 to 2015. He also served as Minister of State from June 2023 to March 2024.
During the handover ceremony, the outgoing Minister spoke about the initiatives that have been launched, including the new RES remuneration scheme and legislative proposals on CCS, biomethane and hydrogen.
Upon assuming his duties, Stavros Papastavrou stated: “It is with great honor and a sense of responsibility that I take over today as head of the Ministry of Environment and Energy. We are facing a historic opportunity and challenge: to continue charting a realistic path where progress and development go hand in hand with respect for the environment and continuous improvement in quality of life. We must ensure fair access to energy for all, especially the most vulnerable, while protecting natural resources. Our goal is to enhance competitiveness today without resorting to easy solutions that compromise the future.”
The new Deputy Minister of Environment and Energy, responsible for energy issues, Nikos Tsafos, has been advising the Prime Minister on energy matters for the past three years. “Every week, I want to be able to stop and ask myself: what have I done to achieve two major goals?” he said. “First, ensuring that energy is affordable for Greek households, businesses, and industry. Many households still struggle to pay their electricity bills and live in homes that are colder than they should be. These citizens expect us to take action to ease this burden. Second, making energy a sector that Greeks can be proud of. We are not there yet, but we are making progress.”
“We are here, ready to take responsibility and resolve long-standing pending issues as well as newly emerging challenges with speed and legal certainty,” added Nikos Tagaras, also serving as Deputy Minister of Environment and Energy, “I believe that we will work with humility and efficiency to provide solutions to problems that affect society.”