An agreement to end power crisis in Gaza

GAZA, — The head director of the power plant in Gaza has announced that the station will operate two generators within 24 hours thanks to an agreement between the Palestinian government headed by Ismail Haneyya and the unconstitutional government of Salam Fayyad in the West Bank.

Walid Saad Sayel, during a joint workshop between Gaza and Ramallah (via video conference) held in Gaza on Sunday, said that Fayyad’s  government has vowed to deliver 350,000 liters of fuel a day after a pledge by the government in Gaza to transfer weekly financial receivables due over them.

Sayel said in the workshop organized by Pal Think that the station is able to operate at full capacity if necessary fuels are available. He called on political parties to neutralize political bickering to avoid spoiling the new power project.

There is moment by moment coordination between the electricity company and the power authority to overcome the fuel crisis and make petroleum available at reasonable costs, he explained.

The power plant official suggested that one solution to overcoming the fuel problem is to import gas from Egypt to operate the plant, a move which would bring costs down to 60 percent, save the PA money, and make alternative power costs competitive with that of Israel.

For his part, Palestinian NGO network coordinator, Eyad El Sarraj, said the agreement holds Fayyad’s government responsible for paying for fuel to operate the plant, pursuing an option for natural gas from Egypt in the future, and running the Israeli line.

The agreement binds the government in Gaza to raise tax rates in the future, to deduct 170 shekels from the salary of all government employees, to transfer 2 million dollars a month, and to organize a campaign to educate Palestinians about managing the payment of their electricity bills, he said.

Fayyad’s government has called on the government in Gaza to take steps in proving it has good intentions in ending the crisis.

Salam Fayyad told Sarraj in a phone call that a sufficient amount of fuel to run the plant will be pumped, allowing constant electricity.