The head of the Directorate for Technological-Industrial Development Zones, Jovan Despotovski, claims in an interview with “Faktor” that the state’s interests will not be compromised by giving Greek Mytileneos the status of a strategic investor. Rather, he claims that the citizens will benefit from lower energy and heating bills by up to 40% and that Skopje’s air quality will finally improve.

The agreement with “Mytilineos” was not prepared overnight. It is a comprehensive process that began more than three years ago with a public call open equally to domestic and foreign entities. More than a dozen state institutions were involved in the process of talks that lasted more than two years. And everyone had the opportunity to contribute to the creation of the Law on Strategic Investments. In addition, these projects were considered by the Energy Council of the Government, chaired by the Prime Minister. We are talking about at least a hundred people who at different stages of the process have analyzed and given their opinion on these documents. Knowing that, there can be no question of projects, that is, investments that were negotiated privately.In addition, the essence of the Law on Strategic Investments foresees a debate in the Assembly which only says that for such projects the goal of the Government was to ensure the contribution of the general public and all political structures represented in the Assembly. After all, the goal of the projects to ensure long-term energy independence for the citizens and the state justifies such a broad approach – claims Despotovski.

In response to your inquiry, I would like to state that I personally hold them in the highest regard and that I work closely with both the Vice Prime Minister Bitici and the Minister of Economy Bekteshi. And I’d like to think that neither side is harboring any animosity. We have demonstrated as a government and as political parties that we are not afraid of an open dialogue, even though it is not always the case that bringing issues to the public instead of the government and institutions makes a good impression on the same public. Ultimately, I hope that the importance of this project to all citizens, present and future, will win over all sides, says Despotovski.