There are no easy solutions Cyprus wants to become an energy hub and to
exploit its natural wealth, Energy Minister Yiorgos Lakkotrypis said on
Wednesday, November 1st, addressing the 5th Energy Symposium hosted by
the Institute of Energy for South-East Europe (ΙΕΝΕ) and Fmw Financial
Media Way company, in Nicosia.
Lakkotrypis said that if Cyprus wished to complete the puzzle of
hydrocarbons, from delineating its EEZ, to discovering reserves, to exploiting
them and developing all the relevant services, then the path would be a long one,
hard work is needed and "there are no easy solutions.” "What I can assure you
is that we are committed to our goals and we will seek to achieve them with
confidence,” he said. He added that it would be very hard to say how
hydrocarbon reserves would be exploited until a clear picture has taken shape
on the quantities available. The so called ‘Aphrodite’ reserves, discovered in
Block 12 of Cyprus’ EEZ which have been confirmed can be commercially developed
only through a direct pipeline to Egypt’s LNG plants in Idku and Damietta for
which intensive negotiations are taking place within a difficult international
economic environment.
Speaking earlier in the same event, Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades
appeared cautiously optimistic in view
of the new round of exploratory drillings to be carried out in the Republic's
Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).
In 2018, Exxon Mobil and Qatar Petroleum is planning to carry out two
exploratory drills in the second half of the year while Italy’s ENI is planning
to proceed with drills in offshore blocks 6,8 and 3.
"We are cautiously optimistic over this new round of exploratory drillings,
hoping that the results will render Cyprus an undisputed major player in the
energy field both concerning the Easter Mediterranean and the EU,” Anastasiades
said addressing an energy symposium.
Apart from the exploratory activity, Anastasiades highlighted that a basic
pillar of Cyprus’ strategy concerns upgrading the country’s relations with
neighbouring states and other influential policy centres.
In his remarks, Cyprus Energy Regulatory Authority’s (CERA) President
Andreas Poulikkas spoke of the authority’s proposal to import natural gas to
Cyprus as a permanent solution, one that runs in parallel with using reserves
within Cyprus’ EEZ for reasons of security supply and competition but also in
order to use natural gas in other areas.
The CEO and founder of EC Natural Hydrocarbons Company Ltd Cyprus Dr. Charles
Ellinas said that very few projects have moved forward to a phase of
implementation in recent years due to low prices. He added that in a world with
a plethora of energy resources, exporting becomes a more difficult option and
he expressed the view that large companies such as ExxonMobil will not go ahead
with any projects unless they are profitable.
More than 25 speakers and 130 delegates participated in the 5th
Cyprus Energy Symposium, which was convened by IENE in association with the Fmw
Financial Media Way company and took place at the Cyprus Hilton hotel. This
year’s Symposium, with the special theme of "Cyprus: Europe’s New Energy
Gate”, which was held under the auspices of the Cyprus Chamber of Commerce and
Industry (CCCI), was sponsored by EKO, J&P-AVAX Group, Wärtsilä and PWC and
is supported by Cyprus Energy Regulatory Authority , Cyprus Electricity
Authority (AHK), Invest in Cyprus (Cyprus Investment Promotion Agency – CIPA.
Cobalt was the Symposium’s official airways carrier. The event’s media partners
included the sites
www.energia.gr
,
www.nomisma.com.cy
and
www.philenews.com
, as well as the daily "Philelephtheros” and the "Cyprus
Weekly” newspapers, Antenna Cyprus TV Channel.