In a fierce brawl between ADMIE and Cyprus-based RAEK, the fate of the ambitious and highly strategic Cyprus-Crete electricity interconnection project is being decided, which at the moment seems to be at “ground zero”.

After weeks of negotiations , pressure and recriminations, ADMIE seems to be playing its last card against Nicosia by communicating a letter from the French cable interconnection company Nexans which warns of suspension of works on September 2.

The project which has been brought to a “short circuit” not only because of the financial disputes and objections of the Cypriot Regulatory Authority but mainly because of the “geopolitical risk” and the possibility that the project may not be completed due to the explicit opposition of Turkey which has declared that “no project will be carried out in the Eastern Mediterranean without the consent or participation of

Unfortunately, if there is no immediate reversal of this situation that has developed, there is a risk that Turkey will succeed in its objective by cancelling this important project , thus confirming that it will have a “veto” on any energy project in the region and confirming that it has the ability to protect what it considers to be the Turkish continental shelf under the Turkic-Cypriot Memorandum and the arbitrary “delimitation” of the Turkish EEZ.

As Nicosia stonewalls having raised serious objections to the economic and technical study and framework presented by ADMIE , the French NEXANS, which is in charge of implementing the project, in a letter made public by ADMIE, warns of an immediate suspension of work from September 2. According to the letter, Nexans informs that if by Friday 31 August it has not received the final order for the work on the Greece-Cyprus cable or if the regulatory framework for the project has not been resolved, then on September 2 it will suspend the work, blaming the Cyprus Energy Regulatory Authority (RAEK).

The RAEK rejects the provision to recover the costs of the project by charging Cypriot consumers from the start of the construction of the cable and not from its completion ,while a major issue has also arisen over the provision that Cyprus will not be entitled to any compensation if the project is not completed due to “geopolitical risk”.

A senior source in Nicosia told us yesterday that decisions at government level will be taken today or Monday at the latest, that “efforts are being made to secure the financial aspect as there are grey areas”, stressing that “there is no decision taken to reject the framework of the ADMIE”.

For the Cypriot government, the situation is extremely difficult as after the fiasco of the Vasilikos terminal, it is not in a position to pass a decision on a project under planning, given the possibility of its non-completion, while the burden of Cypriot consumers will have been imposed on them already from the beginning of the project.

Cancellation of the project will of course mean a significant burden on the implementing body of the electricity interconnection ,ADMIE, which will be exposed to Nexans.

According to information, in the discussion that took place in the relevant committee of the Cyprus Parliament, the members were divided in relation to the acceptance, even if modified, of the terms of the ADMIE in order to continue the project and those that are in line with the hard line of RAEK. According to Cypriot media, consultations are underway between the Cypriot Energy Ministry and the EU and the European Investment Bank (EIB) so that the project can proceed as normal, balancing the conditions set by the ADMIE framework.

These developments come at a time when there is strong concern about Turkey’s reaction to the possibility of continuing the work for the cable laying surveys in areas outside Greek territorial waters ,as the repetition of the practice followed a month ago, with the issuance of a Turkish NAVTEX for the work to give the impression that Turkey has a say in areas of the Greek EEZ and within the area of Greek competence to issue NAVTEX, will be problematic both politically and diplomatically.