Nicosia, Cyprus. MPs on Thursday demanded an accounting for renewables permits issued in the past after it emerged that about two-thirds did not materialise into solar parks and were later sold at inflated prices.
Audit Office report revisited
Parliamentarians revisited an Audit Office report on the Electricity Authority (EAC). One key finding was that roughly two-thirds of private-sector renewables capacity is concentrated in the hands of five companies, while despite a flurry of permits for RES, consumers continue absorbing rising costs.
EAC chairman cites past errors and permit hoarding
EAC chairman Giorgos Petrou said errors made in the past allowed “a small group of private interests” to hoard RES permits. He said many licenses did not translate into actual facilities; their holders kept them and then traded them at several times their initial cost.
Prices cited for permit trading
Petrou said that when the permits were secured, they cost private businesses around €4,000 per megawatt of capacity. Later, he said, these businesses approached the EAC offering to sell them for €250,000 to €300,000 per megawatt.
Capacity approved versus projects built
Petrou said that of about 1,500 megawatts of capacity approved in commercial permits, only 420 megawatts materialised into solar parks. Of the 420 megawatts from commercial RES in operation, the EAC holds only 20.
Auditor-general confirms and cites lack of regulation
This was later confirmed to the Cyprus Mail by auditor-general Andreas Papaconstantinou, who said businesspeople acquired permits with a view to trading them like commodities, describing it as “almost like gambling” and saying that a few individuals made significant profits. The trading was not regulated and followed supply and demand.
What measures should be introduced to account for and regulate the trading of renewables permits?
