Day: November 4, 2022

Efforts to establish Cyprus as a regional educational, research and excellence centre are bearing fruit, Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades said on Thursday evening.

 

Addressing a gala dinner at the Presidential Palace on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the International Multithematic Bio-Medical Congress “Biomedical Scientific Cyprus”, President Anastasiades said that the fact that this conference takes place for the 10th consecutive year, “with the participation of renowned doctors and scientists from all over the World, manifests that it has been firmly established as an internationally reputable Congress in the field of Medical Science.”

 

“And I have no doubt that during the interventions and discussions held today and which are to continue during the next two days, our medical community will receive insightful knowledge on medical and health related issues, such as, amongst others, on cancer, neurology, cardiology, diabetes and molecular medicine,” he added.

 

President Anastasiades praised organiser European University of Cyprus for its “pursuit of academic and research excellence, with the annual Times Higher Education ranking it among the world’s top 201+ universities as regards policies and practices implemented in the fields of teaching, research, entrepreneurship and the transfer of knowledge to society.”

 

He also said that “equally important is the fact that the University’s policies and actions actively compliment the Government’s efforts to establish Cyprus as a regional educational, research and excellence centre.”

 

“And I am glad to attest that our efforts are bearing fruit if one considers that in 2013 only 8 thousand EU and third-country nationals had chosen Cyprus for studies, whilst now they are over 35 thousand,” he noted.

 

Source: Cyprus News Agency

As of 1 January 2021, young people (aged 15–29 years) made up some 16.3% of the European Union’s total population, according to data released by Eurostat, the statistical service of the EU. Cyprus, considered a region because of its population size, is among the regions in which young people accounted for at least one fifth of the total population.

 

Among NUTS level 3 regions, young people accounted for more than one quarter of the total population in the Danish capital region of Byen København (26.7%), as well as in the student cities of Overig Groningen in the Netherlands (25.4%) and Heidelberg, Stadtkreis in Germany (25.1%).

 

In 46 NUTS 3 regions across the European Union, young people accounted for at least one fifth of the total population. One of these regions was Cyprus, which is considered one region by Eurostat due to population size.

 

These regions were predominantly urban and many university cities and were concentrated across a small number of EU Member States: Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Spain, France, Cyprus, the Netherlands and Sweden.

 

Looking into the future and based on Eurostat’s population projections (EUROPOP2019), youths will account for 14.9% of the EU population by 2050, a share 1.4 percentage points lower than their share on 1 January 2021, showing some signs of the progressive ageing of the EU population.

 

According to these projections, the share of youths was projected to remain constant or continue growing in the 16 NUTS 3 regions which had a relatively high share of young persons in 2021. These regions are almost exclusively located in Germany (14 regions), except for Bezirk Verviers — Deutschsprachige Gemeinschaft in Belgium, and one of the French overseas departments, Mayotte.

 

Looking in more detail at the projected developments for the youth population, the 10 NUTS 3 regions with the biggest absolute increases – as measured by the projected percentage point change in the share of youths between 2021 and 2050 – will all be located in Germany.

 

At the other end of the range, the 10 regions with the biggest projected falls in their share of youth populations were more widely distributed. Half of them (five regions) were located in Germany, while the other five included two regions from eastern Poland – Chełmsko-zamojski and Przemyski – the capital regions of Dytiki Attiki in Greece and Paris in France, as well as Tâmega e Sousa in Portugal.

 

The largest relative increases in youth populations across EU regions – as measured by the projected change in the share of youths between 2021 and 2050 in percentage terms – will also be in Germany; there were 24 NUTS 3 regions across Germany where the increase in the share of youths is projected to be higher than 30.0%.

 

At the other end of the range, there were three regions where the share of youths is projected to fall by more than 30.0%: Chełmsko-zamojski (-31.7%), Paris (-32.1%) and Noord- Drenthe in the Netherlands (-35.2%).

 

Source: Cyprus News Agency

Enel and Brenmiller Energy Inaugurate “TES”, an Innovative Rock-Based Storage System in Tuscany, Italy

 

The pilot is the result of the synergy between Enel and Brenmiller, applied for the first time in the world at the Santa Barbara power plant in Tuscany, Italy

 

The technology allows energy to be stored as heat and makes the power plant more flexible, thanks to Brenmiller’s innovative solution, with room to expand the decarbonization of industrial heating demand

 

ROME and CAVRIGLIA, Italy–(BUSINESS WIRE)– The Enel Group and Brenmiller Energy Ltd. (“Brenmiller”, “Brenmiller Energy”; TASE: BNRG, Nasdaq: BNRG), inaugurated today an innovative, sustainable energy storage system in Santa Barbara, Tuscany, in the municipality of Cavriglia (province of Arezzo), in the presence of the President of the Region of Tuscany Eugenio Giani, the Mayor of Cavriglia Leonardo Degl’Innocenti o Sanni, Ambassador-Designate of Israel to Italy Alon Bar, Head of Enel Green Power and Thermal Generation at Enel Salvatore Bernabei, Chief Innovability® Officer of Enel Ernesto Ciorra and Chairman and CEO of Brenmiller Energy, Avi Brenmiller.

 

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221104005085/en/

 

Enel and Brenmiller’s first-of-its-kind Thermal Energy Storage (“TES”) system at the Santa Barbara power plant in Tuscany, Italy (Photo: Business Wire)

 

The goal of this Thermal Energy Storage (“TES”) project is to build an innovative thermal storage system in Santa Barbara, which is completely sustainable and capable of accelerating the energy transition. The integration of the TES system with the existing power plant enables Enel and Brenmiller to test the technology in the field, in challenging operating conditions and on a large scale. The system offers reduced power plant start-up times and greater speed in load variations, which are necessary performance requirements to enable the efficient use of renewable energy. The system can be used to store excess energy produced from renewable sources in the form of heat to offer decarbonization services to industrial customers and to integrate long-term storage solutions with renewable plants.

 

Brenmiller Energy developed the technology in Israel and supplied the storage system; Enel integrated the system with its Santa Barbara power plant and helped to validate its performance in a real environment.

 

The TES technology utilizes a two-stage charge and discharge process to provide thermal energy. During the charging phase, steam produced by the Santa Barbara facility passes through pipes to heat adjacent crushed rocks; during the discharging phase, the accumulated heat is released to heat pressurized water and generate steam for electricity. This first-of-its-kind TES system can store up to 24MWh of clean heat at a temperature of about 550°C for five hours, providing critical resiliency to the power plant.

 

“Flexibility and adequacy are two fundamental components of an efficient and reliable electricity system, which can be supplied more and more efficiently by storage,” said Salvatore Bernabei, Head of Enel Green Power and Thermal Generation at Enel. “This trial allows us to validate a family of innovative and sustainable technologies in the segment of long-term storage, which will allow for an ever greater integration of renewables into the grid.”

 

“This solution makes renewables more reliable, flexible and resilient and can be used to decarbonize sectors that need heat at high temperatures,” said Ernesto Ciorra, Director of Innovability® of Enel. “Furthermore, it does not involve any use of rare materials and can be made using stones available in every part of the planet, so it is scalable in a sustainable way everywhere. We thank the colleagues of the Tel Aviv hub for having found it and our Italian colleagues for having implemented it, thanks also to the financial support deriving from the collaboration between the Italian and Israeli governments.”

 

“Our TES system at Enel’s Santa Barbara power plant in Tuscany is the first-ever system of its kind to provide utility-scale thermal energy storage and offers commercial and industrial users a viable path towards decarbonization,” said Avi Brenmiller, Chairman and CEO of Brenmiller Energy. “The TES also makes it possible to add additional renewables to the grid with greater reliability. We believe the success of this moment reflects the types of innovative collaborations needed to transition the global economy away from its heavy, albeit lessening, dependence on fossil fuels, and towards a 100% clean, flexible, and affordable energy grid.”

 

Eugenio Giani, President of the Region of Tuscany, said: “This inauguration confirms that Tuscany has a central role for energy, both for production and for innovation. Welcoming sustainability today means doing good for the environment, attracting investments and creating value, which is why we are particularly happy with Enel’s choice to test here in Santa Barbara, which has always been a land of work and ingenuity, new technologies that can be applied on a scale. world. Tuscany is already one of the most virtuous Italian regions with over 50% of self-produced energy from renewable sources and an important research and innovation fabric, today we take a new step into the future with the hope that it will be a further contribution to overcome the energy crisis.”

 

“Today we are celebrating a successful Italian-Israeli cooperation experience thanks to which Italy will benefit from an innovative made-in-Israel solution for energy storage,” said the Ambassador-Designate of Israel in Italy, Alon Bar. “A technology that stands out in the international search for clean energy solutions to face the current global energy crisis. The Brenmiller Energy-Enel partnership takes the form of a continuation of the commitment made by the Israeli Embassy in promoting the collaboration protocol between the Israel Innovation Authority and Enel signed in 2015. This makes us particularly happy and enthusiastic in continuing to help these companies to thrive.”

 

The collaboration between Enel and Brenmiller came about as part of an Italian-Israeli collaboration protocol aimed at accelerating cooperation between Israeli companies and large Italian industries. The project was partly financed by the Israeli Innovation Authority, which supported Brenmiller with 1 million euros in financing.

 

About Enel

 

Enel, which celebrates its 60th anniversary this year, is a multinational power company and a leading integrated player in the global power and renewables markets. At global level, it is the largest renewable private player, the foremost network operator by number of end users and the biggest retail operator by customer base. The Group is the worldwide demand response leader and the largest European utility by ordinary EBITDA [1]. Enel is present in 30 countries worldwide, producing energy with around 92 GW of total capacity. Enel Grids, the Group’s global business line dedicated to the management of the electricity distribution service worldwide, delivers electricity through a network of around 2.3 million kilometers to more than 75 million end users. The Group brings energy to around 70 million homes and businesses. Enel’s renewables arm Enel Green Power has a total capacity of around 55 GW and a generation mix that includes wind, solar, geothermal, and hydroelectric power, as well as energy storage facilities, installed in Europe, the Americas, Africa, Asia, and Oceania. Enel X Global Retail, Enel’s global business line active in the areas of energy supply and efficiency, has a total capacity of around 7.9 GW of demand response managed globally and has installed 62 MW of behind-the-meter storage capacity. In addition, Enel X Way is the Group’s new company fully dedicated to electric mobility, managing more than 380,000 public and private EV charging points worldwide, both directly and through interoperability agreements. [1] Enel’s leadership in the different categories is defined by comparison with competitors’ FY 2021 data. Publicly owned operators are not included.

 

About Brenmiller Energy Ltd.

 

Brenmiller Energy delivers scalable thermal energy storage solutions and services that allow customers to cost-effectively decarbonize their operations. Its patented bGen thermal storage technology enables the use of renewable energy resources, as well as waste heat, to heat crushed rocks to very high temperatures. They can then store this heat for minutes, hours, or even days before using it for industrial and power generation processes. With bGen, organizations have a way to use electricity, biomass and waste heat to generate the clean steam, hot water and hot air they need to mold plastic, process food and beverages, produce paper, manufacture chemicals and pharmaceuticals or drive steam turbines without burning fossil fuels. For more information visit the company’s website at https://bren-energy.com/ and follow the company on Twitter and LinkedIn.

 

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

 

This press release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and other federal securities laws. Statements that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. For example, the Company is using forward-looking statements in this press release when it discusses the potential benefits and capabilities of the Company’s TES system, the goals of the TES project in Santa Barbara, the sustainable qualities and capabilities of the TES system, including the possibility to store excess energy so that it is available when needed as well as to add additional renewables to the grid with greater reliability, and that the TES can become a powerful enabler for the electrification of industrial thermal consumption. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, words such as “plan,” “project,” “potential,” “seek,” “may,” “will,” “expect,” “believe,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “could,” “estimate” or “continue” are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Readers are cautioned that certain important factors may affect the Company’s actual results and could cause such results to differ materially from any forward-looking statements that may be made in this press release. Factors that may affect the Company’s results include, but are not limited to, the Company’s planned level of revenues and capital expenditures, the demand for and market acceptance of our products, impact of competitive products and prices, product development, commercialization or technological difficulties, the success or failure of negotiations and trade, legal, social and economic risks and the risks associated with the adequacy of existing cash resources. The forward-looking statements contained or implied in this press release are subject to other risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the control of the Company, including those set forth in the Risk Factors section of the Company’s prospectus dated May 24, 2022 filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), which is available on the SEC’s website, www.sec.gov. The Company undertakes no obligation to update these statements for revisions or changes after the date of this release, except as required by law.

 

Source: Cyprus News Agency

A pioneering study showed that Cyprus has among the world’s highest incidence rates as far as cancer in children is concerned with leukemias being the most frequent cancers, said Prof. Dr. Loizos Loizou Clinical Professor of Pediatrics, Pediatric Oncology – Hematology, Medical School, University of Nicosia.

 

He was addressing, on Friday, the 10th International Multi-thematic Scientific Bio-medical Congress, which takes place, at the European University Cyprus, in Nicosia.

 

The former Director of the Pediatric Oncology – Hematology Clinic of Archbishop Makarios III Hospital, Nicosia and President of the ELPIDA Foundation for children and adolescents affected by cancer or leukemia said in Cyprus, Cancer in children and adolescents (CAC) epidemiology was never before examined and the situation was unknown so they created the pediatric oncology registry of Cyprus (PORCY) to study the incidence rates in 0-19 age group because “we need information to understand etiology because only if we understand etiology, we can practice good prevention.”

 

The study examined incident rates and temporal trends between the 0–19-year-olds from 1988-2017.

 

The PORCY study found that 843 cases for this time period, 42 of cases as the mean number of cases per year and underlined attention on the ASRW (age standardised rate according to the world standard population) where they found 203 which is the third highest in the world.

 

Out of all the cancers in Cyprus, he said, the percentage of childhood cancers is 1.5%, confirming that it is a rare disease.

 

Dr. Loizou underlined that the four most frequent cancers in Cyprus are leukaemia, lymphomas, specified epithelial tumours and CNS tumours. These four groups present in approximately 73% of all our cases, he added.

 

He said the distribution per five-year age group and the age group of 15–19-year-olds present the bigger number of cases, followed by the 0-4 years old, then the 10-13 finally followed by the 5-9 years old groups. He also said most acute leukaemia’s occur between the ages of 1-5 years old.

 

He said during the 20-year period, there has been no significant variation.

 

Regarding the incidence trends of the ASRW, there is a relatively stable distribution, except for thyroid cancer, for the 15–19-year-olds, involving both sexes. This is alarming, he said because for thyroid cancer in Cyprus, we see that we have again among the world’s highest, there is a very high annual change of 7.5% which represents almost 10% of all cancer types of this age group with females affected 3-5 times more than males, while papillary carcinoma is the dominant type and there is a four times increase in metastatic cases which is alarming. Fortunately, he added, there is 100% survival rate.

 

Dr. Loizou said one of the questions is why does Cyprus have among the highest incidence rates of childhood cancer in the world. Although it has remained stable throughout the last 20 years, this remains unanswered. The problem exists elsewhere too.

 

Professor Loizou said they decided to explore for Cyprus four causes, obesity, ionising radiation, arsenic and cancer predisposition syndromes.

 

Regarding obesity, he said it has significantly increased in the last 20 years, remarking that in 2015 obesity was affecting 20% but three years later, that percentage rose to 43%. Concerning ionising radiation, he said efforts and campaigns are underway to limit exposure. About arsenic, he said it can be carcinogenic in low concentrations and that there is a rising trend which is more prevalent in Nicosia district and higher than other countries.

 

For cancer predisposition syndromes, he said these are present in approximately 10% of the cases and this will be further examined.

 

Concluding, he said that this pioneering study showed that Cyprus has among the world’s highest incidence rates and only Italy and Belgium are higher that Cyprus, that there are differences of the most frequent types compared to worldwide patterns. Leukaemias are the most frequent cancers, however lymphomas and thyroid cancers are much more frequent in Cyprus than brain tumours.

 

For thyroid cancers, incidence rates in Cyprus are among the highest globally, significantly increasing temporal trends affecting mainly females and adolescents from 15–19-year-olds, Dr. Loizou noted. There are particular patterns in Cyprus that raise aetiology questions and therefore we should concentrate on exploring the genetic environmental and dietary factors in order to obtain novel insights for better prevention and better cancer control activities, he added.

 

The morning session was dedicated to abstract presentations and Medical Genetics as a tool for new therapies in Chronic and Rare Diseases.

 

Source: Cyprus News Agency

An Invest Cyprus delegation, consisting of George Campanellas and Sarris Demetriou, discussed investment opportunities in Cyprus and possible ways of cooperation during contacts in Kuwait with private investors and governmental bodies of the country.

 

According to an Invest Cyprus press release, in the framework of the implementation of its strategy to promote Cyprus in the wider Middle East and Gulf region, Invest Cyprus carries out targeted promotional activities on the ground in key markets in the region.

 

In particular, Managing Director of Kuwait Investment Authority, Ghanem Suleiman Al-Ghenaiman, and its Executive Director, Ahmad Bastaki, were informed about recent developments in the economy, efforts to leverage the Recovery and Resilience Plan for green and digital transition and the new long-term strategy for sustainable development Vision 2035.

 

Investment opportunities in key sectors of the economy and major development projects were also presented, while possible ways of cooperation between Invest Cyprus and the country’s sovereign wealth fund were discussed.

 

The Invest Cyprus delegation also met with Director General of the Kuwait Direct Investment Promotion Authority, Sheikh Dr. Meshaal Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, as well as with the Director of International Relations of the Kuwait Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Salah Eyadah, promoting the prospects for further development of bilateral relations.

 

The Ambassador of the Republic of Cyprus to Kuwait, Michael Mavros, who attended the meetings, said that the excellent level of political cooperation between the two countries should translate into closer relations at all levels, including tourism, trade and investment.

 

Further, as part of the visit, Invest Cyprus organised the Cyprus-Kuwait Investment Forum, which was attended by leading executives of Kuwaiti state-owned companies, family offices and businessmen from the Gulf region.

 

Invest Cyprus representatives outlined to a targeted audience the advantages of Cyprus as an ideal choice for accessing the European market and presented investment opportunities available in the various sub-sectors of the economy.

 

According to the statement, Invest Cyprus’ efforts to promote Cyprus in the markets of the Gulf region are expected to continue in 2023, with additional actions to promote Cyprus as a business and financial centre, as well as an investment destination.

 

“The United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar and Bahrain make up a region with endless potential for us and as the relevant State Investment Agency, we are making continuous efforts by leveraging the upgraded bilateral relations,” said Invest Cyprus CEO George Campanellas.

 

Source: Cyprus News Agency

President of Cyprus Nicos Anastasiades has congratulated Benjamin Netanyahu on his electoral victory in Israel, saying that he looks forward to working closely together, as in the past, for the further deepening of bilateral relations.

 

In addition, the President wrote on his twitter account that he looks forward to working together for promoting peace in the region.

 

Meanwhile, Israeli Ambassador in Cyprus Oren Anolik wrote on his twitter account that Israel is looking forward to welcoming President Anastasiades next week.

 

“Looking forward to welcoming you to #Israel next week, Mr President!” he wrote in Greek and English.

 

Source: Cyprus News Agency

In a period of four to five years and with the implementation of the reform bills passed by the Parliament, the problem of the backlog of cases pending before the Courts will be solved to a significant extent, Supreme Court President, Antonis Liatsos and President of the House of Representatives, Annita Demetriou have said.

 

The two Presidents had a meeting on Friday at the Supreme Court and in statements to the Press they expressed their readiness for cooperation for the proper implementation of the reform, for the benefit of society and citizens.

 

In her statements, Demetriou thanked the President of the Supreme Court for the meeting noting that this has been the first official meeting of a House President to the Supreme Court.

 

“Together we must meet this great challenge, this great modernisation that the justice sector needs,” she said and noted that the Parliament has already moved forward with legislative and constitutional amendments for all provisions that should be changed. The aim is justice to be granted immediately and effectively, always in full respect of the Constitution and the institutions, she added.

 

On his part, Liatsos expressed his gratitude for Demetriou’s visit, noting that it is a great honour for the Supreme Court and confirming that this is indeed the first time that a House President has visited the Supreme Court.

 

This visit, he pointed out, takes place at a crucial period, which marks the beginning of the implementation of what the reform laws provide.

 

Liatsos expressed his conviction that the Supreme Court will have the support of Parliament in whatever it needs and assured society that Justices will successfully play the difficult role that has been assigned to them.

 

He also said that both Supreme Court and Parliament will move within the framework of their different roles as defined by the Constitution and noted that visits and dialogue are necessary, the only condition being that the line separating each power is respected.

 

Asked about the course of implementation of the reform, he said that the reform initially started with the main goal of decreasing the big problem of delayed cases. He finally emphasised that the reform is expected to help and in a period of four to five years things will be much better in terms of case backlog.

 

Source: Cyprus News Agency

Cyprus welcomes the agreement for a cessation of hostilities between Ethiopia and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, the Cyprus Ministry of Foreign Affairs tweeted, describing it as an important step towards achieving durable peace and stability.

 

“Cyprus welcomes the agreement for a cessation of hostilities between the Government of Ethiopia and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, brokered by the African Union and South Africa”, the tweet reads.

 

“The agreement is an important step towards achieving durable peace and stability in Ethiopia”, it concludes.

 

Source: Cyprus News Agency

The Ministry of Energy is holding intensive consultations with the licensed consortium, so that the production of natural gas from “Aphrodite” field can be launched in 2027, while ensuring the interests of the Republic of Cyprus, Minister of Energy, Commerce and Industry, Natasa Pilides said on Friday, while presenting the Ministry’s budget before the House Finance Committee.

 

At the same time, she expressed hope that there would be some positive developments regarding the dispute over the “Yishai” gas field during a visit by the President of Cyprus to Israel on November 9. Pilides stated that all the parameters regarding “Yishai”, which is adjacent to “Aphrodite” and which caused a dispute, have been agreed with Israel and hoped that there will be a response from the Israeli side very soon. She also said she hoped the neighboring country would not change its position, following elections there.

 

Regarding “Aphrodite”, she said that the plan concerns the interconnection of the infrastructure of Cyprus with the existing infrastructure and pipelines to ensure that the prices and the arrangements that will be made will be beneficial and that Cyprus could also benefit. Regarding the appraisal well in “Aphrodite” in 2023, Pilides stated that this will be at the same time a production well, with additional investment for this purpose.

 

Our position, she added, is that all the natural gas found in “Aphrodite” should be utilized in order to benefit the Republic of Cyprus. She also said that a very important chapter of the discussions that will follow is how the Republic of Cyprus will ensure low prices and for the arrangement for block “12” to include the supply of natural gas for Cyprus.

 

Pilides also said that the dialogue with the European Energy Commissioner is very important to examine whether there is room to speed up the energy program and the creation of common infrastructure by the companies so that Cyprus can supply the EU as well.

 

She noted that the construction of the infrastructure should be promoted as quickly as possible and that it is important to find the customers as well. She described 2027 as a realistic goal for production to start from “Aphrodite”. The Minister noted that the opportunity to supply the EU exists for the next few years but surely this must be done by 2030 or the opportunity will be lost.

 

The evaluation of the data from the seismic surveys in blocks 5 and 10 by the ExxonMobil consortium is also pending, as well as the evaluation of the data from the new Eni-Total Energies drilling in block “6”, Pilides said.

 

Regarding the creation of a natural gas station in Cyprus, Pilides said this would lead to an increase in the region’s environmental footprint and would have implications for the European Emissions Trading System, leading to higher costs that deter the Republic from opting for this. She added that this does not mean that natural gas cannot be transported to Cyprus through a pipeline and be used in the power generation system. She also noted that the prevailing scenarios are for natural gas to be transported to Egypt and the floating LNG facility above the ENI/Total and Exxon Mobil fields.

 

With regard to the natural gas infrastructure in Cyprus, the Minister stated that the delivery schedule of the ship and the jetty according to the contractor is due in July 2023, however, there may be delays, so the completion of the project is expected around the end of 2023. She also noted that arrangements will be made so that non-liquefied natural gas can come either from the Cypriot fields, or from Energean and its fields in Israel, which intends to bring a pipeline to Cyprus so the natural gas to come to a much lower price, around 7 to 9 cents.

 

Pilides stated that the Ministry has to face an unprecedented crisis and to connect the goals of green development, price containment and energy sufficiency.

 

In this year’s budget the total expenditure amounts to €151.3 million and is increased by €29.9 million or by 20% compared to 2022, mainly due to the need to create grant schemes and incentives for green development and to retain the prices, but to keep businesses competitive. The development costs, she said, amount to €103.6 million and are increased by 40.5%. These mainly concern export promotion, industry and business, digitalisation, hydrocarbons, gas infrastructure and electricity interconnection.

 

The Minister added that RES penetration in power generation has increased to 14.9% in 2021 compared to 12.6% in 2020, while there are 180 commercial RES to be implemented. It can, as she said, reach 50% within the next 5-7 years by promoting storage and electrical interconnection projects.

 

She also noted that in 2021 exports increased by 14%, while recently the “Cyprus Made” campaign for Cypriot products was promoted an action plan to promote PDO halloumi and Cypriot wines.

 

Regarding fuel prices she said that there is a new software to monitor prices. The Minister pointed out that Cyprus is among the 5-7 countries with the lowest gasoline prices, however, diesel prices are noticeably higher.

 

Source: Cyprus News Agency