“CYPRUS NEEDS to get its act together on climate change” was the basic message that came out of an EU-organised energy conference, the conclusions of which were announced yesterday by the EU ambassador in Cyprus.
Head of the EU Representation in Nicosia, Androulla Kaminara, yesterday highlighted facts and figures on Cyprus’ handling of energy and climate change which revealed the country’s poor preparedness for the changes ahead.
For starters, Cyprus is obliged to increase the share of renewable energy sources (RES), such as wind, solar and biofuels, to 3.8 per cent of total energy consumption by 2010 and to 11 per cent by 2020. Current use of RES is estimated at around 1.9 per cent.
Cyprus seems to have concentrated most of its efforts on meeting its RES obligations on wind parks but according to scientific data revealed yesterday, Cyprus is among the costliest countries in the EU for wind energy.
Regardless, the Cyprus Energy Regulatory Authority has issued licences for the production of 474 MW of renewable energy, of which 98 per cent will come from wind parks, and two per cent from biofuels. Licences for another 339MW are still pending.
However, astonishing figures released during the energy conference revealed that only 5.6MW of renewable energy from the 474MW total is currently being produced.
“Why are all these people not using their licences?” asked Kaminara. “Some people are in the business of getting licences and not using them,” she added.
The EU head identified problems in the methodology of issuing licences. A total of 28 different departments need to give their approval before a licence is issued. The law states that if one department does not respond within a set time, then it is assumed that the department gives its approval.
“How many of the departments reply in time? There is no information on this. We need a national strategy to get all the departments involved,” said Kaminara.
Also, feasibility studies on wind parks are only done by interested parties, creating a gap in objective analysis. As a result, licences are given for areas across Cyprus with little evaluation on whether the locations are feasible or not.
“Scientists say Cyprus has the lowest wind energy potential in the EU. It is costly, so why so many licences?” asked Kaminara.
The economic impact of climate change in Cyprus is estimated at 0.07 per cent of GDP, around €16.4m, much lower than the EU average of 0.45 per cent. However, Ioannis Economides of the Commerce Ministry argues the real estimations are twenty times that, reaching €334m.
“There is a real difference in estimations. There needs to be more dialogue on this to get the right figures and to plan accordingly,” noted Kaminara.
Cyprus needs to cut greenhouse gas emissions by six per cent by 2020 compared to 2005 figures. Most pollution comes from energy consumption, with road transport taking blame for the bulk, 71 per cent, with airport transport responsible for 29 per cent.
“There needs to be mass development of public transport,” said the EU head.
“It’s not just costs but also opportunities. One million jobs will be created through RES development. What is Cyprus planning to do about this?” she asked.
Meanwhile, University of Cyprus Vice Rector Costas Christofides estimated that the cost of new stations for natural gas and fuel will cost Cyprus between €1.5 and €2 billion.
If this was used to develop photovoltaic and solar thermal centres, Cyprus would secure 350 to 400 megawatt of electrical power from RES in the next five years, covering 30-40 per cent of our needs, he noted.
By raising green taxes to the tune of €200m, Cyprus could become a “Green Island” by 2020.
