Power boost from the north

 

GOVERNMENT spokesman Stefanos Stefanou confirmed yesterday that electricity from the north will be supplied to the south via the Electricity Authority Cyprus (EAC), following an application by the Cyprus Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KEVE) that was submitted and accepted.

“The application was submitted with the approval of the government after legal advice from the Attorney-general,” said Stefanou.

The naval base explosion last Monday that killed a total of 13, took out Cyprus’ main power plant, resulting in daily power cuts.

The electricity was set to arrive by yesterday evening and according to the EAC chairman Harris Thrassou the deal would be valid until the end of August, with the possibility of getting an extension.

Stefanou stated that the provision of electricity will come under the Green Line Regulation that regulates the movement of goods across the line, and will help boost the EAC’s effort to meet demands in electricity. “This will also enable the EAC to carry out the necessary maintenance of existing power producing units,” said Stefanou.

KEVE chief Manthos Mavrommatis went to the north on Friday to speak with the Turkish Cypriot Chamber of Commerce on ways to get electricity supplies from the north to the government-controlled areas.

The negotiations went ahead without the participation of the EAC, with the exception of two advisors requested by Mavrommatis. Thrassou clarified that the EAC took part in the technical and commercial aspects but not the talks.

The Turkish Cypriot Chamber of Commerce’s director of International Relations and Communications, Kemal Baykalli confirmed that the agreement had been signed yesterday morning with the only difficulties being “trying to agree on certain rules and regulations but this was overcome.”

Strong reactions have already been made known by parties such as EUROKO “calling on the government to answer as to who gave Mavrommatis the authority to submit an application to the pseudo state to supply electricity from the occupied areas.”

 

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.