Cyprus Faces Regulatory Challenges In Competitive Electricity Market

The recent launch of Cyprus’ competitive electricity market marks a significant step in modernising the island’s energy framework. However, energy expert Andreas Poullikkas, a professor of energy systems at Frederick University and former chairman of the Cyprus Energy Regulatory Authority (CERA), warns that strong regulatory safeguards remain essential to prevent market distortions and adequately protect consumers.

Strengthening The Regulatory Framework

Poullikkas emphasises that the transition toward a competitive operating model does not automatically guarantee fair pricing or stable market dynamics. The existing regulatory framework, formally known as the “Statement of Regulatory Practice and Electricity Pricing Methodology,” was designed to prevent cross-subsidisation while ensuring tariffs accurately reflect the actual cost of electricity services.

Follow THE FUTURE on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, X and Telegram

At the same time, he argues that further refinements are still necessary, particularly regarding pricing mechanisms in the day-ahead market.

Addressing The Dominant Producer’s Market Influence

At the heart of the discussion is the method by which the dominant market player, notably the Electricity Authority of Cyprus (EAC), sets its prices in the day-ahead market. Poullikkas argues that because the EAC retains a key role in the country’s generation activity, its market bids cannot be equated with those of competitors in a fully mature market. He advocates for a clearly defined, cost-based pricing strategy that not only reflects actual variable costs and technical constraints but also guards against unpredictable cost transfers from regulated structures.

Transparent Rules For Must-Run Units

Regulatory concerns also extend to the handling of must-run generation units, which remain necessary for maintaining system reliability even when they are not the lowest-cost option available. According to Poullikkas, compensation for these units should be managed through separate and transparent mechanisms to avoid creating hidden costs within the market structure. He additionally stresses that physical allocation should take place before financial settlement so reliability-related costs do not unintentionally distort market outcomes or place additional burdens on consumers.

A Lesson In Gradual Liberalization

Poullikkas draws comparisons with electricity market transitions across the European Union, where liberalisation has historically depended on clear regulatory rules, effective supervisory oversight and carefully managed transitions away from monopolistic structures.

While he believes the core principles of Regulatory Decision 01/2021 remain solid, particularly those linked to cost-reflective tariffs and the prohibition of cross-subsidisation, he argues that their practical implementation in Cyprus still requires greater precision and clarity.

The Renewable Energy Debate And System Reliability

Beyond immediate pricing concerns, Poullikkas also challenges the assumption that increasing renewable energy capacity will automatically lower electricity prices. According to the expert, the long-term cost efficiency of the system depends not only on generation costs but also on investments in grid flexibility, storage infrastructure and energy interconnections. These issues remain particularly important for Cyprus because the island continues operating as a non-interconnected electricity system.

Conclusion: Clear Regulation For A Fair Market

In summary, ensuring that every cost is recovered just once, via the proper mechanism and with complete market transparency, is pivotal. The expert’s insights serve as a reminder that without a clear, segmented, and transparent regulatory approach, Cyprus risks creating a revenue recovery mechanism that falls short of developing a truly competitive market. The future success of the island’s energy transition hinges on these fundamental regulatory prerequisites.

The Future Forbes Realty Global Properties

Women Make Up A Majority Of The EU’s Science And Technology Workforce But The Real Gap Is Elsewhere

by News Editor

June 25, 2026

Women now make up the majority of the EU’s science and technology workforce. According to Eurostat, in 2025, more than 81.6 million people aged 15 to 74 were employed in science and technology occupations across the EU. Of those, 52.5% were women, equal to 42.8 million women. The number of women in these occupations rose by 27.9% compared with 2015, an increase of more than 9.3 million over a decade.

On the surface, the numbers resemble progress. However, Eurostat’s category requires context before that figure can be read accurately. The data refers to HRST, or Human Resources in Science and Technology, specifically people employed in science and technology occupations. These are roles where the main tasks require professional or technical knowledge in physical and life sciences, but also in social sciences and humanities. That definition is wider and broader than engineering, ICT, laboratory science, or high-tech research alone.

Follow THE FUTURE on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, X and Telegram

Zooming In

The gender picture changes once the data moves from a wider definition of the workforce to the narrower scientist-and-engineer (research and manufacturing) subgroup.

Scientists and engineers represented almost a quarter of all people employed in science and technology in the EU in 2025. Eurostat describes scientists and engineers as often being the innovators at the centre of technology-led development, making them an important subgroup to focus on separately.

Women accounted for only 40.8% of scientists and engineers in 2025, despite making up more than half of the wider category. That share has increased by a mere 0.5 percentage points over the past decade. The absolute number of women working as scientists and engineers rose from 5.3 million in 2015 to 8.2 million in 2025, despite the push from national and international organisations to increase the number of women in the field. Europe has expanded the number of women in science and technology occupations over ten years. However, that expansion has not extended equally into the scientist-and-engineer subgroup, where much of Europe’s research and innovation work is conducted.

In 2025, of the 39.4 million women aged 25 to 64 working in science and technology occupations in the EU, 35.5 million worked in service activities. Only 2.7 million worked in manufacturing. Women accounted for 57.5% of science and technology employment in services, but only 31.3% in manufacturing.

In 2025, the highest shares of women employed in science and technology occupations were recorded in Latvia at 62.4%, followed by Hungary’s Great Plain and North region at 61.1%, Estonia at 60.5%, Poland’s Central macroregion at 60.4%, and Lithuania at 60.3%. No EU country recorded a majority of women among science and technology workers in manufacturing.

Break-down

Eurostat’s figures measure employment in broad science and technology occupations. They do not show job security, pay levels, management roles, promotion rates, research leadership, or whether women are concentrated in junior or senior workplace positions.

The classification of “senior” also requires additional explanation. Eurostat reports that 45.9% of science and technology workers aged 25 to 64 in the EU were classified as “senior” HRST in 2025. In this dataset, “senior” refers to workers aged 45 to 64. It does not mean senior manager, senior researcher, team lead, or decision-maker.

A high female share in the wider Human Resource Science and Technology (HRST) category does not parallel equal representation across scientists, engineers, manufacturing roles, senior posts, pay, research funding, or decision-making. These figures also reflect the occupational mix inside each country or region, not only structural progress across all areas of science and technology.

The Case Of Cyprus

Eurostat data places Cyprus’s overall science and technology employment at 37.2% of the labour force in 2025, slightly above the EU-27 figure of 36.9%, and above Greece at 26.8%, Malta at 33.9%, and Turkey at 18.2%. This figure covers the total share of the labour force employed in science and technology across all genders.

Progress Or Work-in-Progress?

52.5% in the broad category. 40.8% among scientists and engineers. 31.3% in manufacturing. Europe’s gender gap in science and technology hasn’t closed yet, and there is still work to be done to encourage and support more women to enter the field, especially in research and manufacturing.

Let’s not wait another decade for another couple of percentage points of hope.

Breaking news