If we have correctly understood what was conveyed from Friday afternoon, when the Minister of Energy and his associates met with the delegation from CPP, until Saturday evening, after the visit to Vassiliko by the President of the Republic, both sides now prioritise enhancing the quality of their communication and mutual understanding.
To ensure that, from now on, the collaboration between the two parties is built on solid and healthy foundations, direct communication between them should be established, bypassing intermediaries who have contributed to the destructive dispute that preceded this.
We had pointed out a few days ago that the Minister of Energy was the only remaining link of communication with the Chinese side. And we had mentioned that this was precisely why we could expect any positive developments to come from him.
The contacts initiated and held by Mr Papanastasiou with the Chinese Ambassador to Cyprus allowed him to be informed of the other side’s specific grievances. He was also able to analyse the contractual shortcomings of the Chinese company with the Ambassador. These contacts proved to be very useful and created an environment in which both sides were willing to listen to each other during the meeting with the CPP delegation.
However, from the CPP’s announcement on Thursday last week—a day before the meeting with Mr Papanastasiou—it became apparent that the contractor is questioning the compatibility of certain requirements by the Natural Gas Infrastructure Company (ETYFA) and the project’s responsible engineer (Hill International) with the terms of the contract signed in 2019.
In that announcement, CPP focused on the jetty in Vasiliko as the primary cause of the overall project delay. They referred to the requirements for installing equipment on the jetty to enable the export of liquefied natural gas, claiming that the initial contract did not include such provisions.
Following the Friday meeting, the announcement on Thursday was not given the attention it deserved. What exactly does CPP mean when it says that we asked for different things via the contract in terms of the jetty’s capabilities, and now we are making additional demands? How is the contract for the import and regasification of natural gas for electricity generation connected with the infrastructure for the export of natural gas that CPP refers to?
We do not know the specifics of what was discussed during the four to five hours that the Minister of Energy met with the envoys from the Chinese company. We also do not know if the positions of the contractor regarding additional demands by ETYFA and the project engineer, which are not included in the contract, were thoroughly addressed.
We hope that from henceforth, communication and collaboration between the two sides will continue on a new and improved basis. A comprehensive clarification is needed regarding the contractual obligations of CPP and those of the Cypriot side.
It is a positive sign that there are reports of the competent minister’s intention to centralise decision-making for the project at the ministry while harnessing additional expertise from individuals who have worked on such large-scale ventures. This should not marginalise the administrative leadership of the Natural Gas Public Company (DEFA)-ETYFA, which remains the other contracting party.
Now that CPP has returned to the construction site, work needs to get done, and plenty of it, within tight deadlines. The contractor has confirmed that they will complete the project, and the government, apparently, has abandoned any thoughts of a plan B.
What is urgent now is proper communication, even at this late stage. Communication that is understood by both sides, using a common language.
