Filenews 14 November 2023
According to a publication on energypress.gr website, there are more and more interested parties to participate in the project of the electricity interconnection between Greece – Cyprus – Israel. Among those in talks are the Cypriot state, the Israeli fund Aluma, as well as investors from Saudi Arabia and the Emirates.
Neighbouring countries see interconnection as a key infrastructure, of high geopolitical and energy importance, since it can open Europe's door to their "green" production and be the link in a wider chain of projects in the region.
According to the report, the entry of such players into the project will obviously enhance the geostrategic value of the project and of course provide it with the funds it so badly needs, given its high, increased budget, at levels of €1.9 billion.
The opportunity opened up by the electricity interconnection between Greece – Cyprus – Israel is also seen by the United Arab Emirates which plans to invest up to 54 billion dollars in the coming years in renewable energy, aiming for net-zero CO2 emissions by mid-century. The UAE's entry into the project could snap in with its broader plan for a green export corridor to Europe. The Secretary of State had made that clear. Emirati investment Minister Mohammed Hassan Alswaidi, at a meeting in October with Cypriot Minister of Foreign Affairs. Energy Minister George Papanastasiou, when he had expressed Abu Dhabi's interest in exporting and ensuring electricity sufficiency.
According to the energypress.gr, the special purpose subsidiary (SPV) that will undertake the interconnection between Greece – Cyprus – Israel is established precisely to facilitate the possible entry of the Republic of Cyprus and other investors into the shareholding structure for the project.
The three critical issues discussed during yesterday's meeting between Sdoukos (Deputy Minister of Energy) and Papanastasiou will contribute to the acceleration of interconnection: The completion of the regulatory framework, the transfer of licenses to the new project promoter and, of course, the acceleration of the disbursement of advances in 2023, which concern the grant of €657 million from the European Connecting Europe Facility (CEF).
As Phileleftheros reported a few days ago, Energy Minister George Papanastasiou said that Cyprus will consult with the European Commission in order to use for participation in the interconnection the €100 million included as a loan through the Recovery and Resilience Plan for EuroAsia Interconnector, which recently granted the role of implementing body to ADIME Greece. He also said that an envelope of €2024 million was included in the 25 budget for State entry into the interconnection operator. The final decisions will be taken after the evaluation of an external advisory firm, with which the Government has contracted.
