EAC workers warn of turmoil and chaos’

Trade unions representing workers at the Electricity Authority of Cyprus (EAC) on Tuesday dismissed outright the idea of the organisation relinquishing its ownership and control of the grid, arguing that any such action would cause “turmoil and chaos” in the energy sector.

In a joint statement, they poured cold water on a proposal floated last week by Energy Minister George Papanastasiou. He has proposed taking the ownership and control of the electricity grid away from the EAC and giving it to a state-owned company.

In turn, this state-owned corporation would invest, on behalf of Cyprus, the €100 million in the holding company that would manage the Great Sea Interconnector – the mooted subsea electricity link between Cyprus and Crete.

As things stand now, the EAC performs a dual role – it is not only a producer of electricity, but also has a chokehold on electricity transmission via the grid.

The minister had said he’d give the EAC board a month to get back to him on his idea. Should the EAC not get on board, the government would instead use the Cyprus Hydrocarbons Company as the vehicle to invest the €100 million.

Not unexpectedly, the EAC unions are having none of it. In their statement, they said the electricity grid “is a national infrastructure of strategic importance, owned by the people of Cyprus, worth billions of euro, and there should not even be so much as a thought about taking it away”.

And they described the energy minister’s pitch as typical of his “superficial and sloppy approach”.

They added: “Acting impulsively and without substantiation, the energy ministry has put forth a proposal that would destroy the electricity sector, disregarding the impact on the country’s economy. His [Papanastasiou’s] proposal to break up the EAC leads to turmoil and chaos in the energy sector.”

The unions also complained that the EAC, despite its technocratic expertise, was never asked for its feedback on the Great Sea Interconnector.

Regarding the interconnector itself, the unions said they “hope it succeeds, not because we believe it will drive down the cost of electricity for consumers, but for other technical and/or national reasons, even though the costs of the project are lopsided for the people of Cyprus”.

They went on to warn: “We shall not remain indifferent to any plans afoot to break up the organisation [the EAC], because so far our moderate and constructive stance has been misunderstood.

“Therefore, we shall take all necessary action to safeguard the organisation.”