Since the beginning of the year, the press has widely reported ETYFA’s plan to terminate its contract with the Chinese consortium in favour of contracting with local Cypriot suppliers to complete the LNG import terminal at Vassilikos.
In recent days, it has become clear that this is ETYFA / DEFA’s preferred choice and it has spent the last few months, possibly longer, orchestrating a situation allow that to happen. Unfortunately, the project has reached a crisis point.
The Chinese Consortium has remained, throughout, willing to deliver this project and even now has offered the Cypriot government a way to step back from the brink and save this project so that natural gas can be brought to Cyprus and generate electricity at the earliest opportunity and at the most competitive budget.
The Chinese consortium tabled a proposal that offered Cyprus a comprehensive solution to de-escalate the situation, unblock the stalemate and resolve all outstanding issues. If Cyprus truly wants to avoid the increasingly real catastrophe of losing its
chance of bringing natural gas to the island to generate electricity in the foreseeable future, Cyprus needs only to appoint a decision maker with full authority to discuss and agree the route to implementing that proposal.
The window is narrowing but the Chinese Consortium has made it clear that is willing to meet with such a decision maker in neutral territory, such as Dubai, to negotiate the necessary re-set that would allow Cyprus to realise the benefits of this project.
The choice between a successful or failed project is entirely in Cyprus hands.
