Joseph Muscat and Simon Busuttil may have been on their Santa Marija holiday breaks yesterday but this did not stop them from engaging in radio politics.
The pair traded barbs on the gas power station and the government’s controversial bank guarantee in brief phone interventions on the respective party radio stations.
Speaking from Gozo, the Prime Minister defended the decision to provide a State guarantee to the private consortium Electrogas pending clearance by the European Commission of a security of supply agreement.
He explained the security of supply agreement was a guarantee the government was ready to give because Malta would always need electricity. Such an agreement, which is commonplace in the EU, requires clearance from Brussels because it is considered a form of State aid.
“[Through the agreement] we are guaranteeing to use the electricity so as to have a new power station,” he said.
Dr Muscat insisted the bank guarantee for €360 million was only a temporary measure until the security of supply agreement was cleared.
“This government provided a bank guarantee for an investment [in the energy sector by Electrogas], while the previous administration provided a guarantee for a failure [a reference to Enemalta’s spiralling debt guaranteed through a special purpose vehicle at the end of 2012],” Dr Muscat said.
He added the Nationalist Party could still not fathom the fact that utility prices had been reduced for families and businesses.
But in his own retort, the Opposition leader insisted it was only possible for government to reduce utility prices because of cheaper electricity bought over the interconnector and a more efficient BWSC plant.
Speaking from Spain, Dr Busuttil said the government had promised lower utility tariffs as a result of the new gas power station. Bills went down even though the project was delayed by 18 months, he added.
“If utility prices were reduced without the new power station functioning yet then it begs the question whether we truly need it,” Dr Busuttil said.
He insisted the bank guarantee was “a colossal burden” the people had to shoulder simply because Dr Muscat had “tied his political career to a power station the country did not need”.
Dr Busuttil criticised the government’s lack of transparency over the new power station, noting that no documentation was published when the €360 million guarantee was announced last week on the eve of the Santa Marija holiday period.
“The consequences of Joseph Muscat’s irresponsible decision will have to be shouldered by the people for a long time,” he warned, insisting the Opposition would defend the national interest.
kurt.sansone@timesofmalta.com