“There are no plans to shut down the Dekelia power station,” said George Petrou, Chairman of the Administrative Board of the Electricity Authority of Cyprus (EAC), today, adding that by the summer of 2025, two new generators will be installed at the station.
During his visit to the power station and responding to a related question, Mr. Petrou said, “Ultimately, we managed to avoid any interruptions, and I am pleased to report that the generator repair has been completed, and it will be operational from today.”
“The problem was sudden; the machines are very old, and a technical issue arose that needed to be addressed,” he added.
Fortunately, he continued, “The staff worked around the clock, and we asked people, wherever possible, to make some savings.”
“So, with the cooperation of the people and the help of colleagues, we managed to start the generator today, but it has been a week without interruptions,” he said.
Asked whether there are plans to upgrade the specific station, Mr. Petrou replied that this was “one of the first issues addressed by the new Board of Directors, and tomorrow we will have a presentation to make decisions regarding the station’s upgrade.”
“We expect to proceed with the installation of two new units, and we hope to have them ready by the next summer of 2025,” he noted.
Asked whether the units will be operational by next summer or not, he noted, “Our hope is to have them operational by the summer, but it is not so easy because it involves significant investments. We will try, and despite only having a week in charge (as the new BOD), tomorrow we will make a decision, which I believe will be very significant for the Electricity Authority.”
Regarding the provinces served by the Dekelia station, Mr. Petrou said, “As the experts have stated, this specific station needs balancing with the Vasiliko station. The Dekelia station serves the province of Ammochostos, Larnaca, and partly Nicosia, and we want it to remain that way,” he said, noting that “there are no plans at all to abandon this station.”
Responding to a question about the priorities of the new EAC Board of Directors, the President replied that “the Dekelia station was a priority. We have dealt with the announced increases this week, and tomorrow we will be fully informed, so we will make our second decision,” he said, explaining that “we had made the first decision regarding the appeal, and tomorrow, with the help of our associates, we will make the second decision, so we can reassure the people.”
Asked whether people will ultimately see increases in their electricity bills or not, George Petrou replied, “We will be able to report on that after the meeting tomorrow. I hope not, but we will see tomorrow after the Electricity Authority presents us with their future plans, so we will responsibly make a decision that I hope will be what we all desire.”
