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Athens Macedonian News Agency: News in English, 14-01-13
CONTENTS
[01] Energy taxes need to be lowered, Environment and Energy minister says
[01] Energy taxes need to be lowered, Environment and Energy minister says
"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New
Roman";mso-bidi-font-family: ANA-MPA -- The tax burden on energy
has to be lowered, while renewable energy resources need to be
introduced in a rational way and at competitive prices, Environment
and Energy Minister Yiannis Maniatis told an energy conference on
Monday. "Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New
Roman";mso-bidi-font-family: The focus during Greece's presidency
in the EU will be the 2030 agenda, which will determine the balance
between the protection of the environment and the energy mix in
the EU. "Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New
Roman";mso-bidi-font-family: The targets, Maniatis pointed out, should be
ambitious, so that the EU can still be a world pioneer in the protection
of the environment. At the same time, the competitiveness of the European
industry - not just of energy consuming companies but also of small
and medium-sized ones - should be safeguarded, in a bid to support
employment. "Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times
New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family: According to the minister, the
energy cost of the US industry is 30 percent lower compared to
Europe, making the latter less competitive in the international
market. "Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New
Roman";mso-bidi-font-family: Maniatis termed the Greek presidency
as the most challenging six months of the last decade, pointing
out that Greece is on a turning point toward growth and lower
unemployment and that sacrifices have started to pay off. "Numbers
confirm we can be optimistic," the minister said, underlining a need
for unity. "Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times
New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family: He also mentioned that the informal
Energy Council in May will deal with issues related to energy safety
and infrastructure, such as the south natural gas stream (TAP and the
Greek-Bulgarian pipelines) and the prospects of Eastern Mediterranean
deposits supplying Europe. It will also discuss EU projects of mutual
interest, including the electric and natural gas interconnection of
Israel, Cyprus and Greece and the natural gas deposit in Kavala, in
Northern Greece. "Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times
New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family: Regarding the approval of the
privatization of natural gas transmission operator (DESFA) by
the EU, he said there shouldn't be any delays since the whole
process was in line with EU's transparency rules and regulatory
framework. "Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times
New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family: The head of Athens Chamber of
Commerce and Industry Konstantinos Michalos pointed out that lately
Greece has been gaining an important role in the Southeastern Europe
energy market. He termed hydrocarbon exploration a hopeful prospect
that can generate major benefits to the Greek and the European
economy. "Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times
New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family: He said, though, that the
agreements in Western Europe need to be signed and proposals
for exploration in other areas need to be considered.
"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New
Roman";mso-bidi-font-family: Regarding the renewable energy sources, he
pointed out that the uncertainty needs to be lifted and called on the
government to present its proposals on its plans to cover the market
deficiencies. "Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times
New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family: He said it was wrong to undermine
the competitiveness of businesses by increasing fees in order to
finance deficits. He added, though, it would be just as wrong to blame
any failures of the regulatory energy framework on renewable energy
resources. "Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New
Roman";mso-bidi-font-family: Public Power Corp's chairman and chief
executive Arthur Zervos said the company is being more extrovert in a
bid to increase crossborder trade with Bulgaria and Turkey.
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