Athens News Agency: News in English, 05-04-18

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From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/>

CONTENTS

[01] Greece to profit 30-50 million dollars annually from Burgas-Alexandroupolis oil pipeline

[02] Papoulias inaugurates Interparliamentary Assembly on Orthodoxy

[03] No change in party leader election process in new SYN Charter

[01] Greece to profit 30-50 million dollars annually from Burgas-Alexandroupolis oil pipeline

Speaking at a press conference in Thessaloniki, where earlier in the week Greece, Bulgaria and Russia signed a political agreement for the cross-border pipeline, Salagoudis outlined the benefits to arise from the project, budgeted at approximately 700 million euros.

The 285-kilometre pipeline to carry Russian oil from Burgas in Bulgaria to Alexandroupolis in northern Greece has an estimated investment cost of 750-800 million US dollars with an annual capacity of 35 million tonnes of oil. It will supplement a sea route through the Bosphorus for transportation of the product in the region. It is anticipated that the pipeline will forge a new outlet for Russian oil and for oil from the Caspian Sea to Europe and America.

Greece's prestige was being upgraded, immediate economic benefits will ensue, and new jobs will be created both during the construction of the pipeline and during its operation, while it will also comrpise a permament source of development for Thrace, Salagoudis said.

He also anticipated that the pipeline would spark the creation of new enterprises, and at the same time assured that all measures would be taken, with ultramodern installations, to fully safeguard the environment.

Further, according to the preliminary blueprint for the pipeline's route, the pipeline would not pass through inhabited areas but through plains areas, the deputy minister explained.

He said the signing, on April 13, of the inter-state agreement constituted "a historic moment and will comprise a global model", adding that the companies that have undertaken the construction of the pipeline estimated that some 35-50 million tons of crude oil would flow through Alexandroupolis in end-2008.

Replying to a press question, Salagoudis ruled out the prospect of cancellation of the project, although he did say there could prospectively be a delay.

Outlining the New Democracy government's work in the energy sector in its one year in power, Salagoudis said that major progress has been achieved, while the spread of use of natural gas had also been advanced.

The Attica natural gas corporation EPA had made 1,600 links to the natural gas grid in 2003, while the number of link-ups jumped to 7,000 in 2004, while in Thessaloniki the link-ups with the grid more than doubled from 6,200 in 2003 to 13,000 in 2004, Salagoudis said.

Explaining the low cost of natural gas consumption, Salagoudis noted the example of the AHEPA hospital in Thessaloniki, which spent 520,000 euros for heating oil in the winter of 2003-2004, while the next winter, following its link-up with the natural gas grid, the expenditure was reduced to 182,000 euros.

Salagoudis further noted the government's "agressive policy" vis-a-vis renewable energy sources, given that Greece was required, by 2010, to bring itself into line with an EU directive providing that 20 percent of the energy balance must come from renewable energy sources.

[02] Papoulias inaugurates Interparliamentary Assembly on Orthodoxy

"Orthodoxy's place is found in its progress," Papoulias said, adding that globalisation is simply another development of history and should not cause fear.

"We Greeks know very well not to fear the global melting pot, as Hellenism has always shown a vocation at assimilation and renewal, enriching its ecumenical nature, of which Orthodoxy is an essential characteristic," he said.

Deputy Foreign Minister Panayiotis Skandalakis also spoke at the event.

The event is being held in collaboration with the European Parliament and the European Commission.

[03] No change in party leader election process in new SYN Charter

The proposal to alter the process of election of party leader was rejected by an overwhelming majority, while the Charter-Organisational Congress further decided, by majority vote, to establish the position of party secretary, in voting on the second of a two-day conference of the Charter-Organisational Congress on the theme "Party reconstruction-Charter changes".

Further, it was decided that no change would be made to the SYN Charter regarding the operation of the 'groupings' within the party, an issue that was intensely debated, leading to an intervention Sunday by party leader Alekos Alavanos.

Alavanos wanted a new manner of operation for the groupings as "trends of ideas", rather than as mechanisms that put forward separate lists of candidates at in-party votes on the party organs, proposing that SYN's new Charter explicity state that separate candidate ballots by the groupings would not be allowed during voting in the party's executive bodies.

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