Filenews 8 December 2022 - by Chrysanthos Manoli
The EAC guilds announced measures much more forceful, even harsh, than the short-term work stoppages or daily strikes they usually carried out. The two measures announced yesterday will most likely lead to periodic power outages, which will affect a significant portion of electricity consumers. They will also cause inconvenience - delays for customers waiting for service for connections to the system or for other services related to the power grid, including fault repair and maintenance, as it has been decided that employees do not deal with anything that is outside their service plan which, due to understaffing and poor organization of the workshops, will cause a decrease in productivity.
The announcement of the measures alerted the Ministry of Energy, the administration and management of EAC, CERA and the Cyprus Transmission System Operator. We are informed that yesterday's worrying development will be the main topic of discussion in today's - scheduled for days - meeting of officials at CERA, which was scheduled to examine the issue of electricity adequacy for 2023. Given the decision of the guilds not to employ EAC personnel for the operation of the six steam boilers at the Dhekelia station (60 megawatts each), as according to the guilds their continued exploitation is illegal for reasons of emission of pollutants beyond the permissible limits, it makes the whole issue urgent, which is why today's meeting will be called upon to take decisions, mainly for alternative use of other EAC units. The guilds' measures will come into force next Wednesday, with no timetable for suspending them.
The information of "F" states that the six steam boilers in Dhekelia (with a power of 60 megawatts each) are considered to be competently very important, not only for the smooth coverage of demand, but also for the stability of the system and the maintenance of voltage and frequency at acceptable levels. As we have been told, any inactivation of the six units (of which about four units, about 200 megawatts, are currently being utilized on a daily basis) will not only cause a production deficit (power outages, that is, for some hours or days) but will also hinder the operation of the entire system and will hinder the smooth utilization of the energy of photovoltaic or wind farms. As we were told, the operation of these six small units (outdated and energy-intensive) provides significant flexibility and security to the system and allows better management of the participation of RES in electricity supply.
The problem of adequate power generation, while the measures taken by the guilds, could become more acute if the weather conditions deteriorate and energy consumption increases.
The two decisions of the employees
The EAC trade unions had on Tuesday issued a statement criticising the Ministry of Energy, without reference to new strike measures, which caused temporary relief. Yesterday, however, the guilds, in a letter to the general manager Adonis Yiasemidis, announced the unpleasant things to him. "Following our letter dated 14/11/2022 and taking into account the behaviour of the Ministry of Energy, which has exceeded all limits, in relation to the serious issues that concern EAC, we inform you that:
From Wednesday 14/12/2022
The staff for the construction, operation and maintenance works will work with properly structured and completed workshops, under the necessary supervision and supervision and no member of staff will perform duties not provided for in the Service Plan of the position they hold (s.p. as we are informed, employees complain that workers or assistant workers are called to perform the duties of craftsmen, artisans duties of janitors, etc.).
The six steam power plants of the Dhekelia Power Station, as you know, operate illegally and contribute to the increase of costs and the creation of profiteering phenomena and therefore the staff will not participate in any such activity.
POINT OF VIEW
Even now seriously discuss
The protest measures announced yesterday by EAC workers are not a repeat of controlled strike movements, with the use of reserves and security personnel. Both parts of the decision lead to problems in electricity supply and delay/postponement of planned projects in the network and more broadly in customer service. Until Wednesday, when the start of the protest is scheduled, there are few but very useful days for consultations, with the involvement of the Ministry of Energy. Unfortunately, a lot of time was lost, because some people believed that "the guilds are in the corner" and "will not implement strike measures". You have time, gentlemen, on both sides, to have a serious discussion, even now.
