Energy Minister George Papanastasiou on Friday said he is unsure whether the opening of Cyprus’ electricity grid to private companies will lower people’s electricity bills.

Speaking to the Cyprus News Agency, he said that in large electricity markets, prices typically remain stable when private first companies are allowed to enter, with them then falling later on “due to competition”.

“In a smaller market, which has not been tested often, we will see along the way,” he said, adding that his ministry can intervene “if we see that things are going in the wrong direction”.

The Cyprus energy regulatory authority (Cera) had announced on Wednesday that Cyprus’ energy market will open up to private companies on September 15, with October 1 earmarked as “the first day of trading”.

Asked what will change when private companies are allowed to partake, he said energy producers and suppliers will “enter an environment which is essentially a stock market, in which every half hour, quotes will be made, and electricity can be bought”.

The system will be backed by Eurobank, which, he said, has “knowledge of the subject”.

He added that suppliers, “depending on how good a price they achieve, will sell to consumers”, and thus “enter constant competition”.

Asked about the possibility of suppliers other than the electricity authority (EAC) selling energy to small consumers, he said there “will be interest”, and that consumers will “find it easy to switch from one company to another, ensuring a better price”.

The electricity market association (EMA), meanwhile, expressed their satisfaction with the forthcoming opening of Cyprus’ energy grid to private companies, saying it “welcomes the development” and stressing its “importance for the normalisation of energy prices”.

“With the implementation of the  new competitive market, Cypriot consumers  will for the first time gain the ability to choose their electricity supplier of choice – a fact which will strengthen competition and lead to fairer and more cost-oriented prices,” it added.

It also called for Cyprus to produce a “stable and long-term energy plan”, adding that the opening of the energy market to private companies is “a key tool in this direction, offering solutions which do not favour monopolistic structures but support a healthy, competitive framework”.

Akel, meanwhile, were less than impressed with the government’s stance on the matter of electricity, though the party’s leader Stefanos Stefanou did not directly criticise the opening of Cyprus’ energy market to private companies, instead choosing to speak in general terms.

“We believe that in recent years … what should have been done was not done, decisions were made which should not have been made to move things forward, to build infrastructure, to do all those things which are necessary so that Cyprus would be ready and table to face challenges,” he said.

He also for “a strategy … to ensure the adequacy of production with cheap energy and the observance of our contractual obligations for the green transition, starting from a comprehensive strategic plan”.

He went on to say that Cyprus must “have energy security” and must “be able to meet the goals which bind our country to the green transition, which is a necessity”.