The meeting at the Presidential Palace ended without any substantive results

 

1 July 2022, AKEL C.C. Press Office, Nicosia

Another meeting under the President of the Republic called to address the electricity price increases ended without any substantial result. The measures decided upon are not capable of immediately reducing the price of electricity or at least of halting the ongoing increases.

Consumers remain unprotected in the face of ongoing price increases and galloping prices. They continue to pay for the government’s inaction in implementing a comprehensive energy plan, with the result that Cyprus remains bottom of the renewable energy table. The inertia also applies to investments in storage systems as the government should have proceeded 10 months ago.

AKEL has been submitting a comprehensive package of proposals to the government to address the increases in energy costs for several months now. Among our proposals is the carrying out of lowest price tenders for renewable energy sources, which will ensure cheaper electricity, as is the case in other European countries. However, the Government refuses to take a position on the proposal.

At the same time, AKEL is calling for the taxation of ‘windfall profits’ of the energy companies to proceed, as has been done in other countries. The tools are there. What is needed is real political will to be demonstrated in order to provide relief to consumers from the increases in the cost of electricity, which the government constantly convinces us that it does not have this will.