Jury out on interim gas solution

The ministerial committee on energy will today discuss the interim solution for the supply of natural gas to Cyprus from Russian firm ITERA, with insiders believing it will be rejected.
“The ITERA offer was problematic from day one, it was full of difficulties. The Ministers will probably decide to turn it down but they have to inform the Russians first before any other option is considered,” one told The Cyprus Daily yesterday.
President Anastasiades will chair the meeting whose main target is finding ways to substantially reduce the island’s electricity prices – the highest among EU countries.
Energy Minister George Lakkotrypis told journalists yesterday: “We all want to have an advantageous price that will substantially reduce the price of electricity.”
He added: “What we are looking at with realism is the timeframe of a possible contract and the possibility of some improvements in order not to miss the opportunity to substantially reduce the price of electricity.”
Two weeks ago, a leaked report said that US energy firm Noble Energy had proposed an alternative and faster method to bring natural gas onshore from its Aphrodite or Block 12 concession.
Noble had made an ‘informal proposal’ to the government involving the deployment of a spar platform, according to the report. A spar platform can drill and produce natural gas from a well faster than conventional drilling rigs and Noble could feed Vasilikos power plant as of January 2016.
Officials in Nicosia had made clear they were looking at all alternative proposals to bring natural gas onshore from Aphrodite for domestic electricity production considering how high prices are.
Last month, the government and a US-Israeli partnership signed a memorandum of understanding for the development of a natural gas liquefaction plant on the island.
The preliminary accord is seen as a stepping stone to a final agreement in the future setting up a joint venture between the parties.

Published by: www.incyprus.com.cy