Cyprus Mail 16 November 2020 - by Staff Reporter
President Nicos Anastasiades on Monday expressed the hope that the electricity market would be opened up sooner rather than later, and together with the advent of LNG, supply would become cheaper for consumers.
The president was speaking during the handover of the Electricity Authority of Cyprus’ 2019 annual report by its chairman Michalis Komodromos.
Komodromos said the report included the financial results, the development plans and the challenges ahead.
“The results for 2019 are positive, however with the current results for 2020 it seems that they will be negative. “This is mainly due to reduced electricity sales and the €35 million that the EAC has absorbed as a result of the price reduction by 10 per cent for six months,” he said, referring to relief offered to consumers and businesses during the pandemic.
The main goal now, he added was to prepare for the changes in the field of energy.
Anastasiades thanked the EAC for its “social sensitivity in reducing the price of electricity under the current conditions”.
He expressed the hope that the market would soon be opened up.
“I believe that the terminal for the supply of natural gas is proceeding according to schedule so that in 2022 we have completed the project in order to have the possibility of a gas supply that will reduce production costs and thus will result in cheaper electricity for the Cypriot people,” he added.
The foundation stone for the LNG terminal was laid in July this year at Vasiliko, Limassol
Considered to be the single largest energy project on the island, the LNG facility will feature a floating storage and regasification unit, a jetty, mooring facilities, a pipeline on the jetty and other onshore and offshore related infrastructure.
Construction is expected to be concluded in 2022. Natural gas, to be imported in the liquid form, will be reconverted into gas and used to power electricity stations.
Cyprus had separated the project into two parts: one for the LNG terminal itself, and another for the supply of the fuel.
The government is currently in the process of inviting expressions of interest for the supply of LNG. Around 25 companies have expressed an initial interest. The supply contracts are expected to have a duration between three to five years.
On the LNG import terminal the cost of construction – €290m – will be covered partly through direct EU financing via the ‘Connecting Europe Facility’ to the tune of €101m, and partly through low-interest loans from the European Investment Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
