Minister of Industry Katrín Júlíusdóttir says the report of the committee appointed to look into the legality of Magna Energy’s acquisition of Icelandic energy company HS Orka concludes that it was in accordance with the law.
Harnessing geothermal energy in Iceland. Photo by Páll Stefánsson.
“As far as I can tell the committee concluded that negotiation is the only way,” Júlíusdóttir told Fréttabladid.
The minister added it would cost the state tens of billions to interfere with the acquisition at this point and therefore the right move is to negotiate with Magma on the state’s priority to buy shares in HS Orka and to shorten the lease of the natural resource.
Chairman of the Independence Party Bjarni Benediktsson told mbl.is that the committee’s conclusion was predictable.
“The case was always on the right track and it had been evaluated by a committee on foreign investment […]. The only thing that has happened since then is that the government has delayed the matter and created uncertainty,” Benediktsson stated.
Minister for the Environment Svandís Svavarsdóttir said last weekend that the committee’s conclusion changes nothing regarding the government’s position in this matter. The position regarding HS Orka is to be corrected with public interests in mind, she stated.
Júlíusdóttir said agreements with Magma will be for the benefit of the public and in that sense she agrees with Svavarsdóttir.
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