The cost of electricity will increase because of the decisions taken by the Council of Ministers on energy supply, Republican Turkish Party (CTP) Chairman Tufan Erhürman has stated, Yeniduzen reports.
He stated on social media that the Council had made contradictory decisions despite the Energy Minister’s statement that “we do not have a project other than interconnection” and warned that electricity will become more expensive with these decisions.
Erhürman, who is a lawyer, pointed out that although Minister of Economy and Energy Olgun Amcaoğlu, had said “We do not have a project other than the interconnection with the cable to be completed within 4-5 years“, the Council of Ministers authorised the KIB-TEK Board of Directors to sign a contract [with a private electricity supplier] that is not related to interconnection.
*Referring to the fact that the purpose of the authorisation in the Official Gazette was determined as “providing the energy flow that our country needs during the transition to the interconnected system via cable“, Erhürman stated that the duration of the contract was foreseen as 15 years and added, “However, the Minister of Energy says that the “interconnection project” will be completed within 4-5 years“.
Stating that the installed capacity of the company will not exceed 175 MW with the contract decided by the Council of Ministers, Erhürman said, “But immediately afterwards, it is stated that ’35 MW additional installation can be made if needed’. Either it will not exceed 175 MW or 35 more can be supplied. Which is it? Moreover, in which case will it be needed? There is no clarity regarding these in the decision“.
Noting that the decision states that at least 51% of the total annual energy production will be supplied by KIB-TEK, Erhürman said, “However, if more energy is needed, more than 49% energy can be purchased from the company. Therefore, the 51% rule is overridden immediately afterwards. In which case ‘more energy will be needed’ is not specified“.
Erhürman described the decision of the Council of Ministers as “a house of cards“; “The contract [was made] without tender; the purpose and the framework of the authorisation given to KIB-TEK are unclear, the decision of the Council of Ministers is contradictory and inconsistent within itself! When this decision is evaluated together with the explanations”. Electricity will become more expensive not cheaper, he said.
Erhürman concluded his statement on his Facebook page as follows:
“Let it be known that no contract can be signed with this Council of Ministers decision. And let it be known that we will not allow the energy issue, which is vital for the existence of both current and future generations in this country, to be “handled” with this lack of seriousness!“
*A fifteen year contract has been signed with existing Turkish energy partner AKSA which has a power plant in Kalecik in Famagusta. However, because the TRNC is unrecognised by the international community other than Turkey, only a one-way cable supply by a foreign company from a power plant abroad separate from the main grid is permissible. In order to be suppled by an inter-connector, meaning that North Cyprus could also sell its own electricity to the supplier, the move would need to be approved by the European Network of Electricity Transmission System Operators (ENTSO-E) which will not give approval because it does not recognise the TRNC [Ed.]
