Graph theory‐based approach for energy corridors network to Greece

Purpose – The European Union (EU) energy supply environment is changing significantly and in a dynamic way, establishing the issue of safe energy imports as main priority. Greece relies heavily on energy imports. Furthermore, Greece aims to be elevated into an energy cross road for the energy supply to the EU. In this respect, the aim of this paper is the investigation of the suitability of graph theory concepts on energy supply networks and its application to represent energy corridors to Greece. Design/methodology/approach – Supporting frameworks to represent and assess the vulnerability of the corridors satisfying the Greek demand in oil and gas are considered a crucial issue and are presented in this paper, based on the graph theory approach. In addition, a pilot application of the shortest path algorithm and the maximum flow at minimum risk algorithm for the oil and gas corridors to Greece is presented and discussed. Findings – This paper introduces the application of graph theory to energy policy analysis. Indeed, the pilot application in oil and gas supply corridors to Greece, although quite simplified, has indicated the applicability of graph theory concepts in such problems and is considered a step forward of the existing studies, supporting the design efforts towards the development of a more reliable energy supply system. Originality/value – To the best of the authors' knowledge, graph theory's application to energy corridors is not available in the international literature. In this respect, the added value of the paper is the provision of a sufficient decision support framework for the representation and assessment of the energy corridors' risk of energy availability, through the application of graph theory.