Summary

A final report by the National Technical University of Athens (NTU) concludes that key alternatives to the planned overground high-voltage line between Chania and Damastas — including underground and undersea routes — were not examined with sufficient thoroughness. The study identifies significant potential impacts on the natural environment, agriculture, villages and tourism in the Apokoronas area. The municipality is inviting residents, elected officials and organisations to a public presentation of the findings by the NTU research team on May 21, 2026 at 7:30 pm in the Apokoronas municipal council chamber in Vrysses.

Chania–Damastas power line: NTU study calls for planning review

A final report by the National Technical University of Athens (NTU) has concluded that the planning process for the proposed high-voltage line between Chania and Damastas failed to examine key routing alternatives with adequate rigour. The municipality of Apokoronas announced the findings on May 14, 2026.

What the study found

The NTU research programme determined that underground and undersea routing options were not investigated with the thoroughness the decision required. According to the study, the potential consequences of the planned overground line are real and serious, affecting the natural environment, the agricultural sector, local villages, tourism, and the social fabric of the wider area.

The municipality of Apokoronas had opposed the original routing from the outset, arguing that alternatives had not been given proper consideration. The municipality describes the NTU findings as scientific confirmation of that position.

Public presentation — May 21, 2026

The NTU research team that produced the report will present its findings in person at a public event open to all. Residents, members of parliament, regional authorities, municipal bodies, professional associations and young people are all encouraged to attend.

Date: May 21, 2026

Time: 7:30 pm

Venue: Apokoronas Municipal Council chamber, Vrysses

Background

The Chania–Damastas high-voltage line has been contested since it was first proposed. The municipality and local residents have repeatedly called for a thorough examination of underground and undersea alternatives before any final decision is made. According to the municipality, that demand was not adequately addressed in the original planning process.

The NTU report — the full findings of which will be presented at the May 21 event — now forms the basis for a renewed call on the state to reconsider the decisions already taken.

Note: This report is based on a press release issued by the Apokoronas municipality. No response from the responsible state authorities or the grid operator is included in the source.

PRESS RELEASE – Charalampos Koukianakis – Mayor of Apokoronas

"Science has spoken – Apokoronas is vindicated, time to re-examine the planning of the Chania–Damastas line."

May 14, 2026, 2:30 PM

From the very first moment that the planning of the Chania–Damastas high-voltage line was put forward, we stood against not development, but against a logic that treated our place without accounting for the environment, society and its future.

We faced pressure, we faced doubt. We were told that there are no other solutions, that everything has already been decided. But Apokoronas did not bow its head.

And today, the Final Report of the Research Programme of the National Technical University of Athens confirms in a scientific manner what our community was saying from the very first day: that alternative possibilities exist; that underground and undersea routing cannot be treated as a matter requiring no substantive investigation. The impacts on the natural environment, the primary sector, settlements, tourism and the cohesion of the local community are real and serious.

This study carries particular significance because it comes from science, and when science confirms that critical alternative solutions were not examined with the required thoroughness, then the State is obliged to re-examine its decisions with seriousness and institutional responsibility.

For us, this issue was not merely technical — it is a deeply felt question of the dignity of a place. Because Apokoronas is a living place with history, production, culture and people who are struggling to keep their land alive. We are not only defending our place.

We are defending the right of local communities to have a say in their own future. We are not resisting progress — we are resisting choices that take it as given that the periphery must always pay the cost without being asked. And I want to say it clearly: today's development represents an important vindication for the society of Apokoronas, for the people who stood upright, who were not afraid to speak, and who insisted that this place deserves respect.

I call upon citizens, Members of Parliament, the Region, local government, scientific and productive bodies, young people and every active citizen to be present at the special public presentation of the Final Study of the National Technical University of Athens, which will be presented by the very NTU Research Team that carried out the study.

Thursday, May 21, 2026 | 7:30 pm in the Apokoronas Municipal Council chamber – Vrysses

The presence of all has substantial importance.

Because what is being discussed concerns whether we can plan the future of our place with respect. It concerns whether local communities will have a voice in the decisions that change their lives. It concerns whether development will go hand in hand with sustainability and democracy. There are moments when a place is called upon to decide whether it will fall silent or whether it will stand upright.

Apokoronas has already decided. And for as long as I have the honour of serving this place, I will continue to defend what we inherited from our ancestors and are obliged to hand on intact to the next generations.