Cyprus natural gas reserves “must merge” with DEFA plans, says EAC

Possible natural gas reserves located in Cyprus' Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) should be incorporated in the initial planning for the use of natural gas for electricity generation, said the Electricity Authority of Cyprus (EAC) General Manager Stelios Stylianou.
Under the current planning for the use of natural gas as the main fuel for electricity generation, the government established the Natural Gas Public Company (DEFA), the sole firm to trade natural gas, which in turn selected the preferred natural gas provider of liquefied natural gas (LNG) for a 20-year contract. Under this planning EAC would create a terminal in Vassiliko which would receive, store and de-liquefy the LNG to be imported in Cyprus.
However with the news that block 12 in Cyprus' EEZ could hold up to 8 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, political parties suggested that Cyprus should not commit to long-term contract for the provision of LNG before exploring the possibilities of natural gas extraction.
''I believe we could combine the utilization of our own (natural gas) reserves with the current procedures mobilized by DEFA and EAC,'' Stylianou, who is also a member of the DEFA negotiating team said, in statements after a conference of the Union of EAC' Scientific Personnel (SEPAIK), pointing out that the government's delay in taking a final decision costs the Cypriot economy, given the fact that electricity generation depends on oil.
Pointing out that the natural gas EAC needs for the purposes of electricity generation in Cyprus is a mere fraction of the reserves believed to exist in block 12, Stylianou said “we need to find a way if we are to exploit these reserves to liquefy and export them.''
''Therefore there is a need for a terminal if we are to exploit our reserves,'' he added.
Stylianou noted that provisions can be made so that the EAC de-liquefication terminal could also be used for purposes of liquefying natural gas coming from Cyprus' EEZ and export to other markets.
Chairman of SEPAIK Sotos Savva said that the current DEFA planning guarantees that natural gas would be used for electricity generation purposes by late 2015 or early 2016, something which could save money for the Cypriot consumers.
''For this reason, the DEFA process should not be terminated but we should find a way to incorporate the possibility of natural gas extraction to the agreements made by DEFA and EAC so that we would not delay the arrival of natural gas in Cyprus by 2015,'' he said.