Just five months left to build and commission that power station
Published:
October 6, 2014 at 8:21am
And they haven’t started yet. The Malta Independent visited the site and reports that there is no machinery or equipment on site, no workers, and no sign that anything has been done or is being done. Everything is exactly as it was when Konrad Mizzi made his commitment, two years ago, that the power station would be up and running by March 2015.
The Malta Independent also contacted Siemens, the big name in the Electrogas consortium that was designed to lend weight and make the project more credible.
And Siemens was evasive beyond saying that it has yet to invest.
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http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2014-10-05/local-news/Six-months-to-deadline-for-new-Delimara-power-station-ElectroGas-partners-still-to-invest-6736123153
So what’s one more lie between friends?
One is lucky to get a small house refurbished in two years in this place let alone build a power station from scratch.
And what about the interconnector? When is this being commissioned? Or has it sunk, just like the Opposition?
Get over yourself.
Excuse me, Joseph Muscat tied his political carrier to this project when he was interviewed by Peppi Azzopardi. “Jekk il-Powerstation tal-gass ma tkunx lesta fi żmien sentejn nirriżenja minn Prim Ministru”.
Imla mohhok.
Excellent article by The Malta Independent in that it presents (written?) comments from Siemens, a company which knows how to deal with the media, and therefore its replies can be relied upon.
When he had announced the preference to the bid by Electrogas Malta Consortium in a press conference called on a Sunday morning on 13 October 2013, Energy Minister Konrad Mizzi had declared that Siemens was the lead developer of the project – it is here in the title of this piece by Kurt Sansone of The Times:
“Maltese-Azeri investors clinch gas plant deal, Siemens to be lead developers”
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20131013/local/gas-bidder.490079
Kurt Sansone also reported the following from that press conference:
“Electro Gas Malta consortium was chosen to build a new power station run on gas and related gas supply infrastructure. German firm Siemens are involved as lead developers with a 20 per cent stake.”
I had commented here how, contrary to what the Minister had said, Gasol plc had been reporting to the London Stock Exchange that Gasol was the lead developer of the Malta project – they said it in their interim report to 30 September 2013. Gasol has a 30% stake in Electrogas, and if one examines their website, one would find that the entire concept of the proposed project, involving an FSU, is one of their flagship concepts even if they have nothing to show for it.
This is fully confirmed in the reply given by Siemens to TMI for those who know how to read between the lines – Siemens never shows any signs that it is the lead developer:
“A spokesperson for Siemens Financial Services said: “Siemens is an engineering, procurement and construction contractor to ElectroGas Malta. The ElectroGas Malta consortium was selected as preferred bidder in a tender issued by Enemalta to build, own and operate a Combined Cycle Power Plant (CCPP) with an overall capacity of 200 MW via a special purpose company in October 2013 and was awarded the project in December 2013. The special purpose company which was already founded by Enemalta obtained the final development permit for the project in April 2014.”
If one were to put together the different pieces of Siemen’s reply to TMI as reported in the article, one can notice that Siemens gives a summary of the key events on the project so far, starting from the selection of Electrogas as preferred bidder, going through the issue of the permit for the project in April 2014, and stopping at the signing of what would have been the Share Purchase Agreement in May 2014. But Siemens never mentions that the contract for Power Purchase Agreement and the Gas Supply Agreement – the big contract – has been signed.
Please read also my comment about this article under a previous post, here:
http://daphnecaruanagalizia.com/2014/10/hamalli-united-update-2/
Contrary to what Siemens told TMI, questions about the project status should be made to Enemalta’s directors. They are the counterparty of Electrogas Malta Ltd, and actually, Enemalta is the company representing the Maltese public interest in this deal and must therefore reply to the media. The directors of Enemalta have no choice but to give clear honest answers. They should be confronted directly with questions about what Enemalta’s website says (below) about the project status. They should be asked if the website of Enemalta is representing the truth or if it is lying:
http://www.enemalta.com.mt/index.aspx?cat=3&art=218
“Kemm huma Siemen. Kixfulna sormna, prim.”
So will Joseph keep his pledge to resign should the power station not be up and running by March 2015?
We know he won’t, but maybe someone should remind him what he decided to base his performance test on.
Yes Muscat will resign but then a general conference will insist that he should retract his resignation . Please do remember , because some had placards asking him to remain leader , he retracted his resignation .The same thing will happen
Joseph Muscat had to resign if the deadline was not met
It was all a vote-caching exercise; nothing less.
Only the gullible got the bait.
“Only the gullible got the bait.” Unfortunately Malta’s voting populace does gullible too well
Is Joseph Muscat going to resign?
And where is Simon Busuttil, did he even ask what’s going on?
Initially Siemens invest in shares to initiate the project. After the project has materialized, the first thing they do is to get rid of those shares.
They will get rid of those shares as soon as they get paid for their power plant, if this project ever materialises. China, acting through Gasol, would be only too happy to buy those shares.
On the bright side, Joseph Muscat promised to resign if the power station is not up and running by March 2015.
Would the five months left be enough time for the commissions / power brokering sickos to have laid their bank account foundations and starting capital?
Is the police bolstering effort being prepared to counter the resounding resignation requests from the public and Valletta-to-Mdina public protests?
As if. there won”t be any public protests. This isn’t hunting or huff dejz mal-gvern.
You wait and see: we’ve all got the globish wrong:
The new parliament building is the “Power Station” and as Muscat said all along, it will be running on gas. There’s enough of it going around as it is.
Delayed entry to March 2015, perhaps?
Coming to think about it, is Konrad Mizzi the next sacrificial lamb to be offered on Muscat’s ego-cum-popularity altar?
He started with his Health Minister followed by Madame President. Is Mizzi next in line? Was another promise made to some backbencher by Muscat?
Who will be next on the list after Konrad Mizzi? Joe Mizzi, perhaps?
Where is Minister Shame on You Konrad Mizzi hiding?
China?
Hawwadni ha nifhem! Welcome back by the way, Daphne!
Count down http://t.co/Q92Bjy5hFJ
March 2015 will come and go. The PN will howl and growl unnoticed. People are past caring. A sense of inevitability has crept in. Muscat knows this too well and will keep marching on unperturbed.
The excuses will be:
A. This was a PN project that we were lumped with
B. The project is underground and nearly ready – just needs finishing touches
C. The Muscat inspired EU Sicily Interconnector has allowed us to delay the promised project after consultation with all stakeholders
D. We are modern and progressive – you are negative
E. We have given you a gorgeous First Lady and an EU Commissioner who preaches no but votes yes – what more do you want you ungrateful sods
And, of course, not a resignation in sight. A year into his mandate and with nothing to show for it, the Energy Minister was promoted! What a joke.
The really sad thing is that the government will come up with some lame excuse which will probably include blaming the opposition after which it will simply continue doing what it’s been doing all along – taking us all for an unpleasant ride.
There is the Prime Minister’s resignation tied up to this commitment, or I might be wrong?
Muscat’s electoral campaign was built on lies. His many promises will never materialize. A phony Prime Minister. Now Malta has to suffer.
Shame on whom?
Yesterday some containers were swept off at the Freeport by high force winds and a ship broke its moorings. Isn’t that the same area where the LNG storage ship is planned to be WHEN the promised new power station project actually happens?
Yes, and the captain of the ship mentioned by the ministru fenomenali, (but no photos available yet), had insisted on a breakwater.
Guess what happened.
Come next March we shall see John Dalli’s power-station-on-a-barge popping up over the horizon.
Most probably they blame Gonzi for the delay – same as with Parliament House.
Maybe it will be a floating power station… in which case they will just need to move it in the port.
Stop it with this Sargasm, please.
If the power station is ever built, I will have multiple Sargasms.
Fair enough, but, in the case of Malta, it would be enough if there is one collective Sargasm at Delimara by March 2015. I understand the Prime Minister will be there to inaugurate it.
Malta’s Power Station Deadline in: http://www.timeanddate.com/countdown/generic?iso=20150311T12&p0=255&msg=Malta%27s+New+Power+Station+Inauguration+
And if Joseph Muscat is a man of his word he will resign if it isn’t up and running within 6 months.
We’ll we all know the answer to that.
24 months to go – 23 – 22 – 21- 20 – 19 – 18 – 17 – 16 – 15 – 14 – 13 – 12 – 11 – 10 – 9 – 8 – 7 – 6 – 5 countdown still in progress.
How time flies towards the nemesis of the resignation promised by prime minister Muscat if the power station is not operational by next March.
Hands up those (Labourite or Nationalists) who believe that solemn promise!
You are all forgetting that 2014 is a Leap Year. He’s counting on that extra day.
Comment of the legislature.
No it is not
Do you expect any resignations – as promised – if the power station would not be up and running by March 2015?
Where is Minister Mizzi anyway? He used to be on TV daily… maybe he could make a quick appearance to tell us what is happening especially with regard to the interconnector.
Maybe he ran out of pink lipstick? He’s never seen without it.
“The need to have a diverse mix of energy continues to assume added urgency. For this purpose,
Malta continued to diversify its energy mix and improve its security of supply through a number
of actions. A power purchase agreement and a Gas-supply Agreement were awarded to
ElectroGas Malta Consortium following an expression of interest. The consortium is tasked with
the building, owning, operating, and maintaining of a new LNG delivery, storage, re-gasification
and natural gas supply facility, and a new natural gas-fired combined cycle gas turbine electricity
generation plant, together with all necessary infrastructure connections to Enemalta’s electricity
distribution network, at Delimara.”
https://mfin.gov.mt/en/Library/Pages/PRE_BUDGET_2015_FIN.aspx
What’s new and where is the time frame? This pre-budget document is a load of hot air where the power station is concerned.
Notice how it carefully avoids to state clearly that a PPA and GSA contract was signed with <Electrogas Malta Limited.
It refers to the awarding of the bid.
Next on Labour’s agenda: By December they will say that the consortium did not meet the deadlines and time schedules, and the project will be awarded to a corrupt, World Bank blacklisted, Chinese company which will build the power plant in the period January to March 2015.
I read an article yesterday saying that a decision was expected by March regarding the LNG Gemini and that the ship would eventually come to Malta in September 2015 to start operations.
This means that, at best, testing of the station would start then, as not much testing can be done without fuel.
From that stage it normally takes several months to begin actual operations.
http://www.tradewindsnews.com/weekly/328674/older-lng-carriers-attract-offers-for-conversion-jobs
No worries, it’s just a 2-day job. They just have to stick a giant hamster wheel and attach a generator to it.
Then they’ll get the Prime Minister, the President, the Police Minister and the Fat Controller to take turns running in it.
That’s why they’ve been piling on the pounds, surely.
Ah, but do they have a cunning plan.
Here it is Royal Dutch Shell’s Prelude, offshore plant, it will take directly from fields lying outside north east Australia in open, chill the gas and fill up to three LNG super tankers at a time with the liquid.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2518943/Worlds-biggest-ship-Prelude-takes-water-time.html
Muscat must however, reverse the process. Obviously.
http://files.abovetopsecret.com/files/img/ov529f7f39.jpg
Gives an idea of the size of the thing. Ejja Guz, hafna gass.
“What’s 1,601ft long and weighs 600,000 tonnes… but floats? World’s largest ‘ship’, which is bigger than the Empire State Building, takes to the water for first time”
An Empire Station. Just what Mr. Speaker had in mind.
Must be a stealth power station.
It’s going to be a floating power station. It’s being built elsewhere and when the time comes, it will float into harbour.
Looks like it’s no so ‘fenomenali’ after all, Mr Mizzi Liang. Shame on you.
Anyhow, where is he? Has he been seen in public anywhere beyond that ice bucket challenge with his boss?
I am certain there was never any power station planned to begin with. Ever.
Or maybe Muscat was hoping that his passport scam….ooops I mean scheme, would have racked in more money than it did, so now he’s having to put off his master plans.
The excuse?
The same one used with the hospital concrete pillars.
Minister Mizzi promised to resign if he did not complete the new gas power station on time, didn’t he?
Come March 2015 – Resignation en masse ser ikollna – tarawx.
Parliament gdid fjamant vojt ser ikun hemm,