From the discussion in the Parliament’s Energy Committee, this is what I understood to be the government’s plan for the GSI as well: to find a way to carry it out properly and with the least possible damage
We’re discussing the cost of the Great Sea Interconnector as if it were something to be ashamed of. The European Union is doing us a favor by funding it with 657 million euros; Greece is doing us a favor at the political and administrative levels by taking on the interconnector; and yet we act like we’re too good for it. It’s not that we’re overcome with shame; it’s that we sense (though we don’t have a clear picture of the cost) that the “sad” part is coming. Like some hapless tourists wandering around the cities who suddenly sit down to eat at a restaurant without realizing that the place is “upscale.” That’s where the privileged gather to show off. So now, what do we do?
I happened to be wandering around Barcelona during my post-college years, and I truly sympathize with the government. I got there on a ticket for less than 100 euros and lived off the meager wages I earned as a young person entering the job market. We ate street food and went to local eateries where we got by very cheaply. But it just so happened that one of the eateries was right across from the yachts, and, amid the exhaustion of the day and the dim light of night, we hadn’t noticed it. By the time we saw the prices, we’d already downed a few beers and a salad. But when we realized the salad cost as much as our plane ticket, we decided against ordering the main course. We drank the very last sip of the water they’d brought us, ate the very last leaf of lettuce from the salad, took a breather, paid through the nose, walked two blocks down the street, and ate like normal people.
ΣΧΕΤΙΚΑ ΑΡΘΡΑ
From the discussion in the Parliament’s Energy Committee, this is what I understood to be the government’s plan regarding GSI as well. To find a way to do it with dignity and as little damage as possible. In other words, to stick to the salad, the beer, and the photos in front of the yachts. Let’s go a couple of steps further and find an electricity interconnection from Lebanon or Israel so the numbers work out for us. This is the view of the relevant ministers of Finance and Energy, as well as the Cyprus Regulatory Authority for Energy (RAEK). From the Office of the President, however, the picture is different. Nikos Christodoulides’ statements that we are “very close to launching the GSI for the first time since 2012” suggest that we’ll be moving on to the main course. How will we play it cool, and how “since we’re sitting where we’re sitting, and since people are watching us—and it’s a shame in front of Mitsotakis and Netanyahu, who are part of the group—let’s tell them to order whatever they’re in the mood for”? Not to mention that it’s probably our turn to buy the drinks.
What’s certain is that we sat comfortably at the GSI table, and everyone’s telling us we’d better decide which of the two scenarios we’ll follow. We have until the end of the year, when the European Investment Bank’s sustainability report will be ready. Not that we don’t have a rough idea of the cost. The question now is whether we’ll ask for the bill right away or if we’ll keep ordering…
