Fuel liberalisation document to be submitted to Cabinet

A consultation document on the liberalisation of fuels is to be submitted to Cabinet soon, Resources and Infrastructure Minister Ninu Zammit said yesterday.

Speaking in Parliament during the budget debate he said the Malta Resources Authority had been preparing and studying reports on this issue for the past two to three years.

It had then done the necessary consultation, prepared the legislative set-up and a consultation document, and this was to be submitted to Cabinet in the coming weeks.

The MRA, he said, was also studying and monitoring the amounts of different oils imported into Malta to ensure that the country had a good supply in store.

It was preparing tenders for studies to be held on an electricity cable connection between Malta and Europe, a gas pipeline and the installation of liquid natural gas.

On renewable energy, he said that the government agreed with all forms of renewable energy sources.

The MRA had asked a specialised firm to prepare a report on the possibility of utilising wind energy. This report indicated that in Malta's circumstances, such a farm would have more potential at sea. The authority issued a call for expressions of interest, and had received submissions which it was in the process of studying and evaluating.

He hoped this project would materialise and said that if it did, the farm would be connected to the power station so that the country's surplus energy could be exported to another country.

The MRA was also pushing for greater use of photovoltaics. This was as yet still somewhat expensive, but the authority was doing its best to encourage the use of such systems.

Referring to allegations by opposition whip Joe Mizzi, Mr Zammit said that if he (Mr Mizzi) could produce anything in writing about his claims they would be investigated.

He said that the companies digging for oil had to ensure that they got their money's worth, so they carried out seismic surveys to enhance their chances of success. Were it as easy to find oil as Mr Mizzi made it out to be, all governments would be extracting it from wherever they could in their respective countries.

Oil exploration had continued in territorial waters throughout this year. Malta was doing its utmost, but a lot of work was needed before oil could be discovered.

Mr Zammit said that Malta has had problems with its neighbours on this issue since 1971. It was working to solve these problems, and progress had been made in talks with Tunisia. Like Mr Mizzi, he also believed there was oil in Malta; the problem was that he did not know where it was.

The minister said that when it came to finances, the ministry had tightened the belt. It had reduced its transport expense by 76 per cent from 2003 to 2006, it was spending 72 per cent less on car rentals and had reduced its fuel consumption by 14 per cent. There was also strict and rigorous control on the expenditure on materials. The consumption of water and electricity had also dropped by 21 per cent.

Mr Zammit said that a legal notice on energy performance in buildings had been issued, and the minimum requirements were being applied.

The Manufacturing and Services Division of the Works Division was involved in all embellishment projects in the country, and not just those falling under his ministry. It had been involved, for example, in the works at the Mother Theresa Hall at St Vincent de Paul.

On littering he said it was a shame that people still littered and dumped their rubbish in the countryside. This was a disease. Up to September 12,000 tonnes of illegally-dumped waste had been collected by the Cleansing Department this year. This meant that Lm400,000 had to be wasted to collect such waste when the dumpers could easily have called their local councils, which would have arranged for the waste to be collected free of charge.

The Maintenance Section, which is responsible for the cleaning and maintenance of valleys, had carried out works in valleys in Qormi, Siggiewi, Attard, Chadwick Lakes, Mosta and Zebbug, removing 2,000 tonnes of material.

Mr Zammit said works had continued this year to prevent stormwater damage.

He said he was amused with comments by Mr Buhagiar regarding unkept completion dates for projects.

Had it been up to him, he would have finished projects before the established date, but certain things usually cropped up over which one had no control.

One such example was the discovery of a Roman wall during excavations at Marsa.

Work continued on the widening of the water course in Marsa, and critical work in the Menqa area was expected to be completed by the end of the year.

Mr Zammit mentioned the water catchment project in the Birkirkara, Balzan, Attard, Lija, Iklin, Mosta, Naxxar and Msida area. It was estimated that this area accumulated 160 million gallons of water during a storm with three inches of rainfall.

The project would be costing around €70 million, and an application has been made for EU funding.

Mr Zammit said that apart from preventing floods the project was designed to introduce the integrated use of stormwater.

Agriculture absorbed 4,600 million gallons of water annually, he said. Water drawn from the aquifers amounted to 1,800 million gallons. This project would reduce dependence on water produced from reverse osmosis plants.

Mr Zammit also touched on the works by the ministry's restoration section. Works, he said, were concentrated on chapels in various parts of the island "and not just at Zurrieq". Other restoration works included the old organ at St John's Co-Cathedral, a project which had cost Lm115,000.

The ministry had also applied for EU funding to the tune of €30 million for the restoration of the bastions. The work needed was already identified and the project would start as soon as funds were approved.

Minister Zammit mentioned several restoration projects that had been carried out all over the islands. These included the promenade all the way from Xemxija to Qawra, the embellishment of several town and village squares with trees and the repaving of parish centres and church parvises, including Kirkop, Birzebbuga, Qrendi and now Zurrieq.

The restoration of Hastings Garden in Valletta had been particularly challenging with certain unexpected problems such as safeguarding long-established trees. There had been great satisfaction in the discovery and refurbishment of a big reservoir which was now being used to store water for irrigation.

Mr Zammit said he was very proud of the work done by his ministry's workforce in the paving of Mdina, in spite of unforeseen problems such as having to discard one out of every seven tiles for quality shortcomings. Similar problems had been encountered with other materials. The completed project had given an answer to all sceptics, and Malta now had its first town fully paved with all services underground, at a total cost of Lm1.1 million.

All places of cultural interest would continue to be restored, mostly with government workers who were utilised as extensively as possible. A case in point was Wignacourt Aqueduct, which had been restored, illuminated and paved.

One project that had not been earmarked for 2006 but had still been taken in hand was the Chalet area at Ghar id-Dud, Sliema. By the end of October the whole waterfront in the area had been completely taken up, and paving was now underway.

Work was also underway at The Mall in Floriana.

The end of next week would see the completion of the first phase of 750 metres of Wied Babu Promenade at Zurrieq; the whole project would be completed next year.

Work on Fishermen's Wharf at Marsaxlokk would be taken in hand as soon as materials arrived in Malta.

By the end of the year work would be completed on the paving and embellishment of some 55 tumoli of land at Cospicua Wharf.

Also next year, work would start on the paving of some 10,000 square metres of Merchants Street in Valletta, in the area close to St John's Co-Cathedral. The project would be funded by the EU.

Nationalist MP Michael Asciak said that the stormwater project in Birkirkara had led to the prevention of the tragedies that used to happen in the past.

Dr Asciak dwelt on the functions of the Building Industry Consultative Council and how the building industry had been put back on its feet. While employees earned Lm1.4 million from quarrying and mining in 2000, they were now earning Lm2 million.

Workers in the construction industry earned Lm28 million in 2000 and Lm400 million now. Renting and Business Activities and Real Estate yielded Lm36 million in 2000 and Lm44 million today.

Employment in the building industry increased from slightly less than 18,000 in 2001 to 22,000 in 2005. The number of women working in this industry increased from 2,000 to 3,000.

Dr Asciak said an important development was the setting up of middle management in the construction industry.

He referred to instances where excavations were carried out next to built-up areas, saying the Building Industry Consultative Council's suggestion for a policy document on excavation was very important.

The BICC was insisting on the concept of a method statement by those undertaking the work, and proposed giving neighbours rights to ensure that works were carried out properly.

Work should be supported by an insurance policy to cover any infrastructural damage.

The legal provision of leaving 76 centimetres between one building and another should also be observed.

Dr Asciak spoke on property affordability, saying the government had to see how the price of property could be reduced, such as through the building of more terraced houses. He said the country had an inefficient system when it came to building with energy efficiency in mind. It was important that this was considered in the construction of houses, as it could lead to reductions in energy tariffs.