Skopje, 3 November 2023 (MIA) — No talks have been held to sell the Electricity Transmission System Operator of North Macedonia MEPSO to Greece's Independent Power Transmission Operator IPTO; the Greek company has not submitted any offers to buy it; and the state has no interest in privatizing MEPSO, Minister of Economy Kreshnik Bekteshi said in a TV appearance Friday.

"I'm sure the Greek company has not submitted any offers to the Ministry of Economy. They may want to, but regarding energy infrastructure, we are making efforts to make sure it remains state-owned because this is a strategic investment, a strategic company that can impact security," Minister Bekteshi told Sitel TV.

Regarding allegations that two meetings had been held this year between MEPSO and IPSO representatives, Bekteshi said regardless of whether they had met, it was the government that was to decide whether to increase capital, to recapitalize, or to initiate public-private partnerships.

"The government has not decided any such thing. We have done the opposite. When we had a private partner in the gas pipeline, we bought their shares so that the energy sector is 100% owned by the state," Bekteshi said.

Asked whether the Prespa Agreement implementation plan did not foresee possibilities for IPTO to invest into North Macedonia's power grid, Minister Bekteshi said the Prespa Agreement offered many opportunities to deepen economic cooperation, including the gas interconnector now nearing completion.

"We have no interest in privatizing MEPSO, not even a part of MEPSO," Bekteshi stressed. mr/