Underwater electricity cable assessed of "great value" for Cyprus

NICOSIA, Jan. 23 (Xinhua) -- The Great Sea Interconnector, an underwater electricity cable connecting the grids of Israel, Cyprus and Greece, could hold "great value" for Cyprus, according to an assessment presented to the government on Tuesday.

Cypriot Energy, Commerce and Industry Minister George Papanastasiou said the government had commissioned an international firm to assess the cable's viability, contribution to the island's electricity market, and geopolitical value "in the wider environment of the Eastern Mediterranean."

"The Great Sea Interconnector (formerly the EuroAsia Interconnector) will have a great value for Cyprus' electricity market, with a very high geopolitical value in parallel, as Cyprus is situated in the middle of the interconnection of the electricity grids of Israel, Greece and consequently Europe," the Cyprus News Agency (CNA) quoted the assessment as saying.

The assessment opens the way for a decision by the Cypriot government to join the Great Sea Interconnector equity as an investor. Papanastasiou said that Cyprus would make a decision by Jan. 31.

"If and when the republic ... decides to participate in the project, it would express interest in acquiring equity capital, and will seek out any other interested investment funders," he told the CNA.

He added that Cyprus could invest up to 100 million euros (108 million U.S. dollars), and in that case Cyprus and the administrators of the project would jointly hold the majority stake in the holding company. The cost of the project was originally estimated at about 1.9 billion euros. (1 euro= 1.08 U.S. dollar)