The transfer of the GSI license and management to Greece's Independent Power Transmission Operator (IPTO or ADMIE) demonstrates precisely what has been agreed upon in order to proceed with all pending issues and resolve them, so that the project does not encounter institutional and regulatory problems, Energy Minister George Papanastasiou has said.
The geopolitical dimension of the project needs to be managed by bodies such as the implementing body itself and the European Commission, he noted in statements to the Cyprus News Agency (CNA), adding that the decision to implement the project has been taken, but as long as it is delayed, new circumstances arise that must be constantly evaluated.
Asked about the next steps regarding the Greece-Cyprus electricity interconnection following the transfer of the project license to IPTO Papanastasiou said that the ownership and management license was a pending issue that had to be resolved.
"A solution had to be found, and it was provided with yesterday's (Friday, 10 October) publication of a decision by Cyprus Energy Regulatory Authority (CERA), which was taken on 3 September. Issues that create discussions, possibly in some cases futile, but also create mistrust between the sides need to be addressed and their resolution leads to increasing trust while through these actions, and decisions, the Republic of Cyprus' interest in the project is being expressed in the most official manner, he further noted.
"I believe that the positions of the President of the Republic and the Prime Minister of Greece are clear, as is the direction, which is no different from that given by the European Commission in its recent statement. So, within this framework, we will do everything possible to bridge any regulatory, institutional, and other differences," the Minister of Energy told CNA.
Regarding the geopolitical dimension of the project, Papanastasiou said that it needs to be managed by bodies "such as the implementing body itself, such as the European Union and the European Commission."
"I believe that the European Commission has a role to play here, as the project is European, and any other discussion or comment on this issue is superfluous," he stressed.
Asked whether specific steps for the coming period had been agreed upon during his meeting with his Greek counterpart, the Minister said that both sides agreed that statements should be kept to a minimum and that more human capital and effort should be put into implementation.
The ownership and management license transfer the next day after the meeting shows exactly what has been agreed upon so that everything that is pending can be resolved so that the project does not have any institutional and regulatory problems, he stressed, adding that efforts will be made in the coming days and weeks, as well as an effort to inform the European Commissioner for Energy about the geopolitical dimension of the project.
Asked whether there are still questions regarding the sustainability of the project and whether the €25 million government bond auction announced by the Ministry of Finance for 20 October is related to covering the first installment of the Republic of Cyprus' obligations for the project, the Minister said that, to the best of his knowledge, there is no connection between the two.
"It is not a matter of discussing anything at this point about the project, which has been decided by the European Commission and has gone through an evaluation process. The decision to implement the project has already been taken, but it is understood that as the project is delayed, new circumstances arise that must be constantly evaluated," he concluded.
(Source: CNA)
