Prime Minister Joseph Muscat had categorically ruled out any sort of privatisation for Enemalta before the general election, a secret recording obtained by The Sunday Times of Malta from corporation employees reveals. Dr Muscat is heard explaining Labour’s plans for Enemalta to start buying electricity from the private sector while assuring employees that the corporation will not be privatised.
The audio recording was taken during a closed-doors meeting organised by the Labour Party for all Enemalta employees at the Rialto theatre in Cospicua a few weeks before the March 2013 election. “Our plan does not include the privatisation of Enemalta,” Dr Muscat told employees in a reassuring tone.
“It is very important that you understand this,” he underlined.
“We want to buy (services) from the private sector and we are not going to sell Enemalta to the private sector,” he said to resounding applause.
Dr Muscat’s meeting with the workers was organised to counteract criticism by the Nationalist Party, which was warning Enemalta employees that a Labour government would privatise the State-owned corporation.
Top General Workers’ Union officials, including general secretary Tony Zarb, were also present.
Enemalta employees who passed the recording to this newspaper described the current situation at the corporation as very different to what the Labour leader promised them before the election.
“Although we knew about the deal with the private sector to build a new gas-fired power station, Dr Muscat didn’t tell us he also intended selling 33 per cent of Enemalta’s shares, and to sell the former BWSC plant to the Chinese government lock, stock and barrel,” they said.
Government spokesman Carmelo Abela did not reply to questions about the Enemalta pledge and to state when the government intends to conclude its deal with China Power Investment Corporation to take over the Delimara plant.
Following Labour’s electoral victory, the government soon entered into a power purchase agreement with the private sector for the provision of electricity from a privately owned, gas-fired power station.
The new plant is meant to be up and running by March 2015.
However, what surprised Enemalta employees was the deal struck later with the Chinese government to sell 33 per cent of the corporation for €100 million and to pass on the full ownership of one of the corporation’s major assets – the Delimara power station – for another €150 million. As soon as this deal is concluded, Enemalta will depend on the private sector to buy all its energy needs.
When confronted, the Prime Minister had said this was not a privatisation but a strategic partnership.
Although in economic terms, privatisation can have different meanings, the transfer of shares from a public to a private company is described as privatisation.
The difference is only whether this is a full or partial privatisation.
Until now the government opted for the latter in the case of the corporation while totally privatising the Delimara power plant, currently providing more than half of Malta’s energy needs.
The PM’s audio recording can be downloaded at timesofmalta.com.