New developments could reshape the future of the stalled Greece-Cyprus electricity interconnection project, known as the Great Sea Interconnector (GSI), as the US deepens its engagement in the Eastern Mediterranean.
According to well-informed sources cited by Kathimerini, discussions are under way on how to bring new investors into the project, for both geopolitical and financial reasons. Talks reportedly include the potential involvement of US investors, possibly through the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), an agency that funds infrastructure projects.
Organizations like the DFC were created to provide financial alternatives in regions with strong Chinese influence, and Washington has expressed interest in energy connectivity projects linked to the planned India-Middle East-Europe Corridor (IMEC). The DFC has already invested $125 million in Greece’s Elefsis Shipyards and plans additional infrastructure financing, mainly in ports. Greece, meanwhile, aims to serve as one of IMEC’s entry points into Europe.
Momentum around the GSI project was evident in Brussels on Wednesday, where Greek Energy Minister Stavros Papastavrou and Cypriot counterpart Giorgos Papanastasiou met with EU Commissioner Dan Jorgensen. After the meeting, Papastavrou said the two ministers “underlined the need to update the financial and technical data of the Greece-Cyprus interconnection,” echoing earlier remarks by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides.
Following his meeting with Christodoulides, Mitsotakis referred to “new conditions” that strengthen the value of connectivity projects, saying, “We are moving toward an immediate update of the project’s techno-economic parameters, so it can be reinforced by the entry of new, strong investors.”
Athens and Nicosia are asking the European Commission to help facilitate the participation of third-party investors in the GSI. That likely means new studies will be required on the project’s economic viability and technical design, delaying progress until a new investment structure is in place. The Commission is expected to remain part of the initiative, as it is listed as a Project of Common Interest (PCI) with geopolitical significance tied to IMEC.
A key next step will be a Washington meeting between the energy ministers of Greece, Cyprus, Israel and the US, where integration of the GSI into IMEC and potential US participation will be discussed.