VISIT TO MALTA OF THE VICE MINISTER FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CLAUDIO DE VINCENTI TO PARTICIPATE IN THE MEDITERRANEAN ENERGY CONFERENCE (VALLETTA)

The Vice Minister for Economic Development Claudio De Vincenti visited Malta on 10th and 11th July to participate in the “Mediterranean Energy Conference: Security of Gas Supply”.

The conference, organised by the Maltese Ministry for Energy in collaboration with the European Commission and Cyprus, brought together representatives of the governments and the industrial sectors of EU countries, of North Africa and the south-eastern Mediterranean to discuss energy security and the diversification of gas supplies. In this context, the participants reviewed the possibility of launching a Euro-Mediterranean coordination platform to improve collaboration between EU and non-EU countries. The proposal will be examined in depth in view of the Euromed Conference to be held in Rome next 19th November.

During his speech, the Vice-Minister De Vincenti highlighted the main outcomes of the G7 ministerial meeting on energy and explained the priorities of the Italian Presidency of the EU with regards to the energy sector. De Vincenti emphasised Italy’s commitment to the completion of the EU’s internal market, the fulfilment of the objectives of 2020 and the strengthening of the external dimension of the European Energy policies.

The Vice Minister also met the Maltese Minister for Energy Konrad Mizzi and they discussed the bilateral collaboration between the two countries in the energy sector. In fact Italy is contributing to breaking Malta’s isolation with regards to energy supply (the works on the electrical interconnector are well underway and the project will be inaugurated by both governments by the start of 2015) while there is renewed interest in the project of the gas pipeline between Sicily and Malta.

For more information about the conference click here.