The Minister for Energy, Trade and Industry, Michael Damianos, welcomed the statements of the Prime Minister of Greece, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, regarding the Great Sea Interconnector (GSI).
Damianos said that the involvement of the French investment group Meridiam in the GSI is “extremely positive, as we have already stated” adding that “things are progressing as planned.”
In a post on social media, on Sunday, Mitsotakis stated, amongst other things, that the project would end Cyprus’ energy isolation, whilst welcoming the French group Meridiam’s involvement in the project.
When asked to specify the timing of the NAVTEX notice for seabed surveys and studies regarding the route of the GSI cable, the Minister for Energy said that the Greek government is expected to issue the NAVTEX “within the next few weeks”, adding that such a development “will be positive as it will move the project forward.”
Responding to a question about the timeline of the due diligence report on the project from the European Investment Bank (EIB), Damianos said that the EIB is expected to provide this data to the Independent Power Transmission Operator S.A. (IPTO), as the implementing body for the GSI, before the end of the year.
“This is something we are also expecting, but we would not wish, for any reason, to downplay the significance of Meridiam’s involvement in the project and its geopolitical importance,” he emphasised.
Power cuts due to grid interconnection
Furthermore, when asked to comment on the fact that the Transmission System Operator Cyprus (TSOC) had carried out a controlled, rotational shedding of consumer load across the whole of Cyprus due to a technical problem in the electricity grid located in the island's Turkish-occupied areas, Damianos said that, as a Confidence-Building Measure, the free areas are connected to the occupied areas at two points, and if there is a fault in the occupied areas, this may result in a power cut in the free areas as well, and vice versa.
He also said that, as reported by the relevant authority (TSOC), there was a 15-minute power cut in the free areas due to a technical fault in the occupied areas.
