CYPRUS: Finance Ministry to set up energy investment fund

The Finance Ministry is working to set up an investment fund to manage the revenue from hydrocarbon deposits in a credible and transparent way, the Ministry of Finance said in a statement on Monday after Finance Minister Harris Georgiades met with the Energy Council, appointed last September to advise the government on energy issues.

Georgiades said at the meeting that the Ministry sees the energy sector as the main driver for economic growth, focusing on preparing Cyprus for the management of revenue from hydrocarbon deposits and investments in the broader energy sector.
The Ministry also stressed in an announcement the need for attractive investment opportunities in the wider energy sector by private companies or private partnerships in collaboration with the public sector to raise funds from European banks.
The Energy Council briefed the Minister on an initiative to monitor and assess the current energy situation and strategy of Cyprus.
The Council has scheduled a series of meetings with local agencies on energy matters. The current situation will be assessed and will be the basis for scenarios to develop an integrated energy strategy up to the year 2050. The Energy Council also briefed the Minister on the framework of the EU climate and energy policy for 2030 and the conclusions of the European Council acknowledging Cyprus' particularities as a small and isolated insular energy system.