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Fenech challenges Muscat to come clean on Enemalta workers' future
Finance minister Tonio Fenech says Labour leader Joseph Muscat should explain whether his plans to build new power plant would effect Enemalta employees.
18 January 2013, 12:00am
Jurgen Balzan
Jurgen Balzan
2 min read
Opposition leader Joseph Muscat should come clean over the future of the Enemalta employees, finance minister Tonio Fenech said.
"Muscat must say what will be of the Enemalta employees since a Labour government would be passing 40% of the country's energy generation to a private company and close the old plants in Delimara," Fenech said.
Refusing to answer questions on whether a Nationalist government would lay off any workers from the energy corporation, Fenech threw the ball in the Labour leader's court by challenging him to explain whether Labour's plan to build a new privately-owned power plant generating 40% of the country's energy needs would lead to the dismissal of Enemalta workers.
Fenech's comments echoed the Nationalist Party information office's mail shot to employees of Enemalta warning them their jobs are in imperilled by Labour's proposal for a new gas power station. The finance minister noted that such plants do not employ more then 50 persons.
On the gas pipeline linking Malta to Sicily, Fenech said that the project totally depended on EU funds and added that the current feasibility studies being carried out confirmed that the project's sustainability depended on European funds.
Previous governments did not push for the project's implementation because without such funding the costs to import gas would have driven utility bills up, Fenech explained.
Fenech was speaking during a visit to U-Boat Worx, a company which set-up shop in Malta in 2011 and invested over €7 million in its venture to promote underwater filming facilities and locations in Malta. The company provides underwater vessels, robots and other equipment used for underwater filming.
He pointed out that the company was looking at expending its activities in research, in cooperation with Heritage Malta and other state agencies. Fenech said that the company is looking at increasing its work force to 80, from the current 20 employees it has.
U-Boat director Anastasia Budykho explained that the company offers services of underwater filming, search and rescue and research. The company was involved in a number of movies shot in Malta, including Fort Ross and Matter of Honour.
Jurgen Balzan was a MaltaToday reported from 2011 to 2017.
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Dear Tonio
What happens to the employees once the interconnector is in place and the Marsa Power Station shuts down? - or these two events will never happen, just mentioned for the sake to say something during the election period (as usual).
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Tonio. You PaNick. You are saying so many things about this energy project. Are you afraid that if this project will be successful you will be remebered as the worst finance minister in the polictical history of this country.
Mark Fenech •
Everybody knows that Tonio Fenech, has a number of cases where he is yet to come clean. Tonio Fenech thinks that all maltese suffer from dimentia, and some months ago he declared that there are an excess of employees at Enemalta.
He thinks that people forget that it was gonzipn that has closed the shipyards and made all the employees redundant. Also he is the same minister who has made a number of Air Malta employees redundant, and he stated that he would not employ "ċuċ Malti" at the top of Air Malta.
If I was him I would not even be seen on the streets, with the S&P downgrading being the last nail to his coffin as minister of finance.
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.... kmieni beda jbati bid-dementia l-bravu tonio, l-accoutant tar-rahal ..... OF ALL PEOPLE hu qed jitkellem fuq il-futur tal-haddiema? .... wara li qaccat u qalfat mijiet u mijiet ta' impiegi fl-Air Malta u fid-Drydocks, possibbli ghandu wiccu daqshekk infurrat li jistaqsi x'se jigri mill-haddiema tal-Enemalta? ... bhalli kieku mhux hu u l-klikka tal-hazen shabu li kissru, farrku u mlew bid-dejn lil Enemalta u rvinawha .... u issa miskin qed jinkwieta ghall-haddiema .... ipokrizija bhal din bilkemm titwemmen .... gonzipn jahsbu li se jergghu jidhku bil-maltin kif ghamlu hames snin ilu .... ghandhom xi cans !!!! .... dalwaqt hu se jerga' jsib postu f'ufficcju tal-aaountants fejn kien jahdem qabel ..... u jiftakar fl-imghoddi meta rnexxielu jharbat u jzarma u jdejjen pajjiz u jgibu ghar-rkubbtejh .....
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Okay, so Tonio Fenech makes the question, possibly legitimate. I have another: can PN come clean on how the Euro 800 million (and counting) currently owed by Enemalta will be paid!
I understand the natural desire to shoot down Labours energy revolution proposal but that should not be used to deviate the main issue. If Enemalta has amassed this debt it must be due to bad luck or bad management!
Minister Fenech, if with some form of devine intervention you retain power, how does the government plan to restructure Enemalta and pay it's debt?
Lawrence Covin •
Dear Mr Fenech, can you guarantee their jobs if you go for the interconnector? What would those who are currently employed to generate electricity do if we get it ready-made from abroad, eh?
Luke Camilleri •
MINISTER FENECH TELLING JOSEPH TO COME CLEAN???
This person truly knows no shame!
He has quite a lot to come clena, not paying Social security to his maid, jet-setting to watch football games with persons with vetted interests in i-gaming, having his house REDECORATED on-the-house, the involvment of HIS PRIVATE OFFICE to finance his election campaign AND CHALLENGES not taken up to come clean!
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"Previous governments did not push for the project's implementation because without such funding the costs to import gas would have driven utility bills up, Fenech explained". I tell you what has driven the utility bills up, AUSTIN GATT AND YOUR INCOMPETENCE IN MANAGING ENEMALTA DID! YOU DO NOT EVEN QUALIFY AS AN AMATEUR BUT MORE AS A HOBBIEST!
