Govt. to Lease 2 Turkish Power Vessels, Costs Cut by 9%

A ministerial committee tasked with scrutinizing a plan to lease power-generating vessels on Thursday reached an agreement with a Turkish company after slashing the costs by nine percent.

“The ministerial panel tasked with following up on talks with the two ship leasing firms, the American Weller Marine and the Turkish Karadeniz, has successfully finished its negotiations,” Energy and Water Minister Jebran Bassil said after the committee’s meeting.

“An agreement was reached with Karadeniz – after slashing its prices by 9% -- to lease two vessels with a capacity of 270 megawatts,” Bassil added.

The minister revealed that the company was seeking to “provide the first vessel this summer.”

“A technical committee -- comprising the representatives of the premier and the ministers of finance, energy and water, and environment, in addition to consultants -- was tasked with drafting the contracts that stipulate the financial, technical and environmental terms, which will be discussed during cabinet’s next session in order to take the final decision,” Bassil said.

During the ministerial committee’s last meeting, Bassil stressed the need to unify the standards and prices on which to negotiate with the vessel leasing firms.

The cabinet on Wednesday had decided to lease vessels with a capacity of 270 megawatts, stipulating new negotiations over the initial high prices proposed by the two firms.

The cabinet had also stipulated lowering the leasing period to two years – renewable for one year.