Power purchase agreement ‘won’t make night tariffs possible’

The power purchase agreement will not make night tariffs possible, according to Nationalist MP Ryan Callus.

He said the energy minister should be concerned that, because of the power purchase agreement, the government will not be in a position to make favourable use of the cheaper energy which could be generated through the interconnector.

The MP said the country was investing €200 million from taxpayers' money in the interconnector, and yet consumers will not be enjoying its benefits.

"What the minister should have said is that night tariffs will not be seeing the light of the day because government's private agreement," Callus said.

"The biggest threat to the night tariffs is the new power station and the strict agreement which the government will be signing with the private company."

He said that the country would have to purchase all 200MW energy from the private company, while the highest night demand during summer nights was of around 165MW.

"There is no place for the use of the interconnector," Callus said.

He took the minister to task over the continuous of the heavy fuel oil, despite the Labour Party having dubbed the power station "cancerous factory" during the electoral campaign.

Harping on the "Alice in Wonderland", Callus noted that the original plan was meant to provide a 10-year-fixed price agreement.

"The PN had said this was not possible and to do so Malta would have to pay high premium. Today, the minister said the price will be fixed for five years," Callus said.

"Labour had said Alice in Wonderland would have tanks on reclaimed land, it would not be sold and that it would give a 25% reduction for all. But Alice in Wonderland has now been given a face-lift, her hair was cut and dyed, has become fatter and taller. This is not the same Alice in Wonderland we heard about during the electoral campaign."

Much to the amusement of fellow MPs present in parliament, Callus finished off his speech by citing Avril Lavigne's Alice song, "so where am I now? Upside down".