The Cyprus Electricity Authority has characterized PEC’s claims as inaccurate and defamatory, which are contained in a company press release issued in the context of the ongoing public debate regarding the government’s ability to reduce electricity prices.
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ΣΧΕΤΙΚΑ ΑΡΘΡΑ
Read the announcement in its entirety:
Regarding recent media reports containing inaccurate and defamatory claims and references about the Organization, the EAC wishes to note the following to set the record straight.
Regarding PEC’s claim that “the EAC is delaying the integration of significant new generating capacity into the grid and is acting, in effect, to maintain its dominant position and keep electricity costs high in the country,” the following points should be noted:
(a) The private company P.E.C. POWERENERGY CYPRUS LTD has constructed a seawater pumping station on the beach, at the southwestern boundary with the Vasilikos Power Plant (PS) Vasilikos, on plot no. 558, which is leased exclusively to the EAC under a long-term lease for the purposes of the Vasilikos Power Station. The aforementioned structure constitutes an illegal encroachment on the parcel. Consequently, the EAC continues to fully and uninterruptedly exercise its rights of use and exploitation of the property in question, in accordance with the terms and provisions of the current Lease Agreement, which precludes any third-party interference.
It is international best practice to maintain a buffer zone around power plants for safety purposes and to minimize environmental impacts. Therefore, the role of the leased parcel is of critical importance for the safe operation of the Vasilikos Power Plant,
(b) the required environmental and zoning permits for the construction of the aforementioned pumping station have not been secured, for the installation of a seawater intake pipeline, as well as for the hot cooling water discharge pipeline.
As a public-benefit organization, we must express our serious concerns and request that the necessary studies be conducted by the company in question to determine whether the projects they are carrying out may affect the efficiency of the Vasilikos Power Plant and, by extension, the interests of all consumers. The EAC’s primary concern is to ensure that the operation of the Vasilikos Power Plant is not affected, which could result in a reduction in its efficiency. At the same time, the EAC expects the competent authorities to intervene to restore legality and confirm that the company has complied with the requirements of the law and its licenses.
The EAC follows all procedures and regulations as provided by law, as well as securing all necessary permits when implementing a development project. Everyone must do the same.
The EAC expresses its serious concerns regarding the risk of impaired operational performance of all generation units at the Vasilikos power plant, due to a potential increase in the temperature of the seawater used for cooling that the AHK pumps, as the pipeline installed in the sea by PEC, to return used cooling/desalination water to the sea, is located a short distance from the EAC’s cooling water intake point. To cool the power plant’s engines, the EAC uses seawater, and any increase in the temperature of the intake water could cause damage and result in extremely serious financial losses for the EAC, and consequently to Cypriot consumers.
In conclusion, the EAC reiterates that it fully supports market competition and that it has never hindered nor does it have any intention of hindering healthy competition. For the EAC, competition is an important opportunity for development and adaptation, as well as an additional incentive to improve infrastructure, service quality, and, above all, to offer new services to consumers. What the AHK will not tolerate—and reserves all its legal rights—is the defamation of the Organization through baseless allegations and characterizations.
