A €36,000 power station cable has been reported missing and the police have been called into investigate, Finance Minister Tonio Fenech said in parliament.
He said the cable was noted to be missing last August 25. It had been stored in a warehouse where the cables due to be used for the power station extension are kept. The cable belonged to the contractor building the extension.
The minister also said in reply to another question that contractor BWSC has already been paid €153 million (excluding VAT) for the power station extension, and only €13m remain outstanding for pending work. The extension is, in the most part, being funded by the European Investment Bank.
The minister also said that work is proceeding as programmed on the European power grid interconnector project.
He said the work is currently focussed on the detailed design of the high voltage equipment, including the switchgear, transformers and shunt reactors and the preparation of the environmental impact assessment of the terminal station, the gallery for the cables between Maghtab and the distribution centre at Kappara and the laying of the cable on the seabed between Maghtab and the edge of Maltese territorial waters.
In Italy, the public consultation phase is being held as part of the application for permits for the laying of the cable in Italian territorial waters and under the roads from Marina di Ragusa to a 230kV distribution centre near Ragusa.
A preliminary survey of the seabed where the cable will be laid has been completed by an Italian company and a more detailed survey will now be conducted by the cable contractor as the precise route is mapped out.
Mr Fenech said the price at which the electricity will be bought will depend on current conditions and generation costs.
Mr Fenech said the possibility of using gas for the Delimara power station remained under consideration and it was too early to decide on the infrastructure needed. Much depended on decisions which needed to be taken in the EU on funding available for projects such as this.