Energy companies tempted by the Government’s gas power station proposals will be invited to signal their interest as of April 11, Energy Minister Konrad Mizzi said yesterday.
We’re committed to being open about its progress
The expression of interest call will be published in international energy journals and websites. It will then be whittled down to a shortlist, with a final contract expected to be signed and sealed by the end of September.
Applicants whose proposals included corporate social responsibility projects for communities around Delimara would be looked upon favourably, the minister added.
Speaking at a press conference at Delimara power station, Dr Mizzi reaffirmed the Government’s electoral commitments to cut household electricity bills as of next year and commercial ones in 2015.
The Government was also determined to switch the BWSC oil-powered power station to gas and to close the older section of Delimara’s power station by the end of this legislature, he said.
Dr Mizzi promised full transparency throughout the process of building a new gas-run plant. “This is a national project and we’re committed to being open about its progress,” he said.
Citizens will be able to track the project’s progress through a specially-created website and status updates issued on a monthly basis. A more detailed project description statement would also be published.
The Labour party swept into power last month on the back of a vow to build a gas-fuelled power station with private sector involvement within the first two years of office.
According to the plan, the power station will be built by a private company, which will then sell the electricity generated to Enemalta. Dr Mizzi said yesterday that the Government wants the private plant to be manned by Enemalta employees.
Sceptics have questioned the tight timeframes and asked what corner-cutting will be necessary for them to be met. Some have also questioned the wisdom of entering a fixed-price gas purchasing agreement, arguing that buying the gas at spot prices would be cheaper.
Dr Mizzi said that, while a fixed-price agreement would be the best way of ensuring cheap energy generation by the new power station, gas purchased for the BWSC power station – once it was converted to run on gas – could be subject to “more flexible pricing models”.
The minister yesterday said that preliminary work for the project was already under way: interim project teams had been set up and stakeholder management plans for dealing with interested parties such as local councils were being drafted.
Nominations for Enemalta’s board of directors had now been submitted and the Government would soon be announcing who would be sitting on the corporation’s board, the minister said.
He assured Louis Giordimaina, Enemalta’s current executive chairman, that he enjoyed the Government’s full faith.
According to sources close to Enenmalta, the Government would like Mr Giordimaina to assume a CEO-style role and appoint a non-executive chairman in his stead.