It's Time to Set the Record Straight

It's ironic that a year ago to the day, I wrote a blog about the very same topic that I'll be writing about this evening but alas, nothing has changed since that very day and with the way things are indeed going, it doesn't seem as if anything is improving either! Of course, a small blog like this read by a select bunch of readers is obviously going to have anything but an influence on either the public policy as pursued by our government, but using this medium as a method of venting against the inadequacies that a system currently presents will never do anyone any harm.

In recent days - scrap that, since around the beginning of the year, actually - Malta has been having various power cuts that are actually more reminiscent of a country such as Mugabe's Zimbabwe than a Member State of the European Union. Worryingly, there have been three blackouts on the island (of course, the glorious PL decided to compare this to one of Malta's most shameful days in history, Black Monday, by calling it Blackout Monday) since Tonio Fenech took over the electricity portfolio from Austin Gatt, something which is unacceptable in this day and age. Too many faults have developed at the Marsa Power Station, which subsequently sends the Delimara Power Station into overload and makes that collapse as well, meaning that Malta then has no electricity for it is not yet connected to the European grid. But while there are problems with the country's electricity supplier, there are also major problems with the policy that Malta has adopted over the years and seems to not be willing to change.

This problem is that there is a monopoly of electricity supply, meaning that Enemalta, for all their "negotiating skills" when it comes to buying oil and fuels, have the right to charge whatever rates they want to their customers because obviously, Malta cannot choose between different providers of fuel and electricity. And then you wonder why our electricity bills are among the highest in Europe. This leads to an inadequate service overall - bills aren't sent on time (many a time, actually), customer care is among the worst on the island (they probably top the list, with Melita a close second) and rates are sky high. The problem however accentuates when you realise that Malta is currently entirely fossil fuel dependent*, and therefore having another electricity provider would also mean having the accompanying industry surrounding it - something which Malta's size cannot possibly permit because it would mean the further industrialisation of the little land that we have left, something which the country cannot afford. Furthermore, putting another power station down in the South would only serve to irk such people on even more than they currently are, confirming their thoughts that they are treated like second class citizens.

Therefore, as the expansion to the Delimara Power Station might indeed not be the way forward, what is the solution? I'm by no means an economist or an energy expert, but I believe that the first thing that the government should do is continue to look at connecting Malta to the European grid. This will help eliminate all those extra power cuts that we've been having of late and ensure a constant supply of energy. Automatically, I believe, the government should also look to liberalise this sector of the economy in order to allow foreign companies access into the local market by means of stations that are set up on mainland Europe, this by means of another connection from the European grid towards Malta. This would allow Italian electricity companies to supply electricity to Malta, for example, and be in competition with Enemalta. It is only then that Enemalta would no longer be able to abuse of their dominant position in the relevant market and subsequently be forced to lower their prices accordingly, as otherwise they would lose their clients faster than the credibility that they've already lost.

We'll see if come June 17, 2011, I'll have to write yet another entry about the pitiful state that we're currently facing.

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It's great to see my writings having a bit of an effect, albeit minimal.

Today, I was approached on Facebook by a Masters student, who asked me if a blog that I had written on The Times about the Presidency of Malta, in early 2009, was my own work and whether it could possibly be used to form part of the content of his thesis.  I was also asked if there was any other information which could be found on the President, but unfortunately, I could not help him in that regard.

It may be something small, but it sure did make me feel smart for a little while.

God Bless You all!
Matti

*Not taking into account any electricity produced by solar panels, which is minimal.