Environment Minister Stavros Papastavrou and Development Minister Takis Theodorikakos have signed a joint decision establishing Greece's new spatial framework for industry and supply chains. Deputy Environment Minister Marilena Soukouli and Deputy Development Minister Lazaros Tsavdaridis also co-signed the executive order.
The measure gives Greece a modern spatial plan for productive development by establishing a single, predictable framework governing where and under what rules industrial and logistics activities operate. Together with existing spatial frameworks for tourism and renewable energy sources, officials said Greece now possesses its first cohesive, holistic spatial planning model.
The update replaces a previous industrial spatial framework approved in 2009 under substantially different international, economic, and manufacturing conditions. Officials noted that Greece and wider Europe must now address energy security, access to critical raw materials, supply chain stability, sustainable energy transitions, and technological transformation.
Ministers stressed that future production cannot be planned using outdated rules. The new framework updates, clarifies, and supplements the 2009 plan by drawing on implementation experience, updated legislation, and contemporary spatial requirements.
Policy shift toward organized industrial zones
The core policy choice establishes a gradual shift away from scattered, fragmented development toward organized forms of spatial layout. It introduces clearer rules, modern infrastructure, and higher environmental compatibility to regulate commercial output.
Officials said the policy brings order to productive activity by reducing land use conflicts and organizing environmental remediation. It also supports upgrading existing industrial hubs while allowing for their measured expansion where necessary.
For the first time, spatial planning moves beyond locating isolated manufacturing plants to address production and distribution as a single productive system. The decision covers the entire logistics chain required to produce, transport, and sell goods.
This integration links factories directly with transportation infrastructure and supply streams. Officials said the combined approach strengthens export orientation and builds greater resilience across national supply networks.
Legal certainty and critical raw materials
The framework strengthens legal certainty by providing clearer site directions and incorporating statutory amendments, judicial case law, and practical data gathered since 2009. The measure aims to reduce investment uncertainty and maintain market continuity.
Government officials described legal certainty as a practical necessity that allows businesses, citizens, and local municipalities to know what developments are permitted, where they can be built, and under what environmental conditions.
Clear priority is assigned to investments involving critical and strategic raw materials available in significant quantities within Greece. Officials stated that developing these resources will enhance both national energy security and European strategic autonomy.
The framework provides spatial backing for industrial facilities, value chains, and raw material projects under European Union Regulation 2024/1252. Utilizing domestic mineral assets forms part of a broader national and European economic strategy.
To maintain industrial stability amid international uncertainty, the plan offers spatial support for strategic investments and Projects of Common European Interest. Officials noted that these projects remain vital for overall economic growth in Greece.
The framework emphasizes upgrading existing facilities while incorporating local workforce considerations into site selection. Planning guidelines will now evaluate the availability of specialized labor required to operate industrial infrastructure.
Rules for business parks and informal clusters
New commercial activities will be directed into organized receptors, such as Business Parks, or into areas where municipal zoning explicitly permits industrial use. Unregulated construction outside planned municipal zones will be actively discouraged.
Officials said this approach balances operational efficiency with spatial protection. Concentrating development into organized receptors allows for superior infrastructure, precise operating terms, and effective environmental oversight.
The framework prioritizes expanding established Business Parks and restoring informal industrial clusters through specialized Remediation Business Parks. Competent ministries will review legislative structures and take targeted actions to accelerate approval processes.
Under Law 4982/2022, authorities will explore institutionalizing an Intermediate Degree Organization Industry and Supply Chain Receptor. This supplementary tool will serve regions where developing a fully organized Business Park is not immediately feasible.
Environmental protection and impact assessment
Ministers stated that economic development and environmental protection must proceed together. The regulation incorporates principles of industrial symbiosis, efficient resource utilization, circular economy models, climate resilience, and sustainable production.
The executive decision officially approves the Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment for the sector and integrates its protective directives into the framework. Environmental annex terms will be enforced by relevant authorities under Greek and European legislation, while manufacturing receptors, Business Parks, and informal clusters remain governed by Law 4982/2022.
