WITH SOME areas receiving more than their fair share of power cuts while a lucky few have had none at all the Electricity Authority of Cyprus (EAC) has admitted that mistakes have been made in their efforts to manage the island’s limited power supply.
Although consumers are supposed to suffer only one cut a day for up to two and a half hours, some are experiencing more than one blackout while others have not seen any cuts at all since Monday when the explosion at the Mari naval base took out the island’s main power plant.
EAC spokesman Costas Gavrielides told the Sunday Mail: “We don’t claim we haven’t made any mistakes. Unintentional injustices have been made in some areas.“
Citing no specific examples, he said “We didn’t cut some areas that should have been cut” and also vice versa. He stressed that when these errors occur they are brought to the attention of the EAC, and that “we try to fix it as soon as possible.”
A resident of Ayios Dhometios expressed exasperation at the inconsistency, saying “These cuts don’t make any sense. I was cut last night, but two streets away there were no cuts,” adding, “This is a wartime drill without the war.”
Comprehensive timetables for the power outages remain unavailable, with Gavrielides expressing the intention of the EAC to finalise and issue them “as soon as conditions are more steady, “hopefully” in the coming week.
He emphasised that such a schedule would only be released “when we believe we have a fair chance of keeping to it.” This comes after a timetable was prepared on Wednesday, before being swiftly withdrawn “due to unforeseen circumstances.”Once published they should provide a modicum of stability to the situation, as the Mayor of Nicosia, Eleni Mavrou, expressed her feeling that “We can manage with two-hour cuts every day, but the problem is that we do not know when. This makes things more difficult.”
Amongst the disruption, concerns are being aired regarding the wellbeing of Cyprus’s more vulnerable residents. Anna Shakallis reported witnessing residents of an elderly care home in Aradippou gathered under a tree on the pavement, sheltering from the sweltering midday heat. Shakallis, member of the Board of Directors of charity ADHD Cyprus, referred to the plight of these elderly residents as “an absolute disgrace”. EAC spokesman Gavrielides said regretfully “We cannot support old people’s homes. They do not deserve to suffer but it is impossible for us to do this.”
Nicosia Municipality has taken positive steps to protect those most vulnerable to the heat. Mayor Eleni Mavrou confirmed to the Mail that funds had been made available for the installation of a small generator at the multifunctional Municipal Centre, to allow for an air conditioned environment for groups potentially at risk, particularly children and the elderly.
There are a handful of ‘priority’ areas considered the most “important services” that are exempt from the power cuts. EAC spokesman Gavrielides stated that in addition to the hotel industry, efforts to protect hospitals, airports, industrial areas and some foreign embassies from outages were being made. This explains why some residential areas are enjoying uninterrupted power, as they may share a grid with a prioritised facility.
This is “purely down to luck”, said Gavrielides, rubbishing the notion that any individual residence was receiving prioritised status due to the station of its occupant. Both the Mayor of Nicosia and the British High Commissioner, Matthew Kidd, reported receiving power cuts at their personal residences, as did Irish Ambassador Patrick Scullion.
This has disconcerted some residents, who deem it to be unfair. An Engomi resident benefitting from close proximity to the US, Russian, and Egyptian embassies, told the Mail, “It’s unfair. I feel kind of guilty – some people have had three cuts in a day.”
Environment Commissioner Charalambos Theopemptou revealed that he had initially enjoyed an uninterrupted service, living close to a medical facility. “I was one of the lucky ones,” he said, praising the efforts of the EAC and calling for the public to be understanding towards their predicament.
The EAC have issued a decree demanding that all facilities with an electricity generator must make use of them. Gavrielides conceded that “we have no means to enforce it.”
Adherence to the order he described as “crucial”, and that the EAC are “relying on good faith” that it will be followed. Speaking to the Sunday Mail, spokesman for the British High Commission (BHC), Paul Lakin, revealed that the BHC are “doing everything to alleviate the grid as much as possible,” including using a generator 24 hours a day on weekdays, using no air conditioning whatsoever, and issuing frequent reminders to staff to be mindful of conserving energy.
Similarly, a spokesperson from the US Embassy said, “As of Monday we have switched to full generator use – we use no grid electricity at all”, as well as issuing advice to US citizens in Cyprus on how to minimise consumption.
Several other organisations reported maximum efforts to reduce their use of electricity. The EAC itself has ceased to use air conditioning in its buildings, as has the Mayor of Nicosia’s office, which is no longer lit up at night. Mavrou reinforced widespread calls for conservation. She said “In the first few days we all responded consciously and responsibly.” “It is important to continue this effort, because the difficulties will not end very soon.” Finally, she encouraged everybody to “make efforts to adjust to this way of living and working – show social spirit and be responsible.”
