George Papanastasiou, Minister of Energy, announced that Cyprus’ strategy regarding the exploitation of natural gas, located in the Cypriot Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and other fields in the region, will be decided following a workshop which will take place later this month. Workshop’s participants list include involved energy companies that operate in the Eastern Mediterranean region.

Speaking at the 13th Nicosia Economic Congress on Tuesday, the Minister highlighted the government’s shift in its energy policy, which now focuses on exploiting Cypriot natural gas and other regional gas fields in order to generate power to meet the island’s needs. He also mentioned the possibility of exporting liquefied natural gas to Europe.

The Minister stressed the significance of taking advantage of the new EU energy reality, which views natural gas as a transition fuel towards accomplishing the ultimate ambitions of the European Green Deal. He added that the Ministry is working towards achieving a substantial reduction in energy costs in Cyprus by securing quantities of natural gas, mainly from the Eastern Mediterranean region.

Later, Mr. Papanastasiou noted that since 2009, around 78 trillion cubic feet of natural gas have been discovered in the Eastern Mediterranean, while it is estimated that 21 trillion cubic feet are currently available for export. In addition, he reminded that Cyprus had its first natural gas discovery in December 2011 and has since discovered quantities ranging from 12 to 15 trillion cubic feet in the Cypriot EEZ.

In terms of strategy, the Minister pointed out the need to transfer part of the natural gas deposits to Cyprus for electricity generation purposes. He also announced his intention to invite companies involved in the entire natural gas chain in the region to a workshop in order for the government’s plans to be thoroughly discussed. He emphasized the aim of finding concrete, sustainable solutions through exchanging views with technocrats, state advisers, experts and professionals in the field.

Moreover, Mr. Papanastasiou mentioned that Cyprus has several energy options, including importing liquefied natural gas for regasification at the Vassiliko terminal, which is currently under construction; another option is transferring the natural gas through a pipeline. “The latter option would be the most advantageous for Cyprus, if companies and investors take advantage of the synergies in existing and future planned infrastructure projects, which are offered in the Eastern Mediterranean due to the proximity of gas discoveries”, the Minister added.

The Minister further explained that the natural gas could be channeled to the domestic market, initially for power generation, while some quantities could be liquefied at the Vassiliko station and then be exported. He added that Cyprus’ location in the heart of the Eastern Mediterranean and near the Suez Canal is ideal for this purpose.

In the end, Mr. Papanastasiou stressed the importance of having storage space throughout the electricity supply network to prevent the energy produced by renewable sources from being wasted. He also pointed out that pollutants produced in Cyprus amount to around 3 million tons per year and entail considerable costs for consumers.