The Opposition has given notice of a motion in Parliament condemning Infrastructure Minister Austin Gatt over the award of the Delimara power station extension contract and calling on the Prime Minister to remedy matters.

The motion recognises the need for the governemnt to raise power generating capacity but it condemns the minister for:

* Allowing the power capacity situation to deteriorate to the extent that Malta may suffer power cuts if demand exceeds supply;

* Selecting plant equipment from BWSC based on combined cycle diesel technology after having raised the legal emission thresholds;

* Choosing equipment which would need additional spending of €24 million so that it could be converted to gas operation, when equipment which did not need such conversion was available;

*Choosing equipment which would produce at least 31 tons of toxic waste per day along with a ton of oil sludge per day, with the disposal costs that were involved;

* Choosing equipment which would cause so much pollution that it would require emission control equipment which in this case was still in prototype stage and thus could pose a health risk to neighbours;

* Choosing equipment which would occupy much of the limited space at Delimara;

* Choosing equipment whose operating costs would be higher than gas operations, thus forcing an increase in power tariffs.

The motion describes the tender adjudication process as having been 'contaminated' and expresses serious doubts over how the final choice was made.