The government’s energy policy has no strategy or planning
Statement by Stefanos Stefanou, AKEL C.C. Spokesperson
AKEL C.C. Press Office, 21st April 2017, Nicosia
Given that after four years of vacillations and improvisations, ruling DISY party and its President have “discovered” that on the energy issues it is to our strategic advantage to have a natural gas liquefaction terminal in our country, we have to remind them of the following:
When the Anastasiades – DISY government took office four years ago, it had inherited a comprehensive energy plan, a central aspect of which was the establishment of a natural gas liquefaction plant in Cyprus.
It inherited an unprecedented interest in the project on the part of neighbouring states such as Israel, as well as from banks for funding and from consultancy firms for studies on the project’s technical and financial sustainability.
It inherited structures and a state-owned company staffed by renowned scientists in the field of natural gas infrastructures, ready to hire consultants to promote the project of constructing a terminal.
But what did the Anastasiades – DISY government do?
It abolished all the plans that had been drawn up, dismantled the state-owned company, expelled the scientists, stopped the talks with neighbouring states, leading to the interest in the project being downgraded.
We were thus plunged into a period of inactivity and delays, characterized mainly by improvisation and regressions.
One characteristic example is that of the “Aphrodite” deposit, for which, five years after the identification of hydrocarbons, there is no comprehensive proposal whatsoever for the development of the reserve.
Unfortunately, the policy of inertia and improvisation is a rule as far as the way the government handles the country’s energy issues is concerned. The government vacillates between different options for introducing Natural Gas for electricity power purposes without any results whatsoever. All the efforts it has made have failed, while the government and ruling forces have recently left the Natural Gas Public Company (DEFA) without a head, any leadership or support.
On issue of the Energy Regulatory Authority it is following the same and even worse tactics. During its period of governance, it has not made any updates whatsoever to the National Action Plan, as a result of which we are in danger of not fulfilling our contractual obligations. This will entail the paying of enormous fines which it is not certain whether the Cyprus economy can withstand.
All of the above demonstrate a government that is faltering without a strategy and planning. Apart from the third licensing round, it has not been able to implement any project and has no comprehensive proposal with regards our energy issues.
