Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis visited Lefkada today, for the signing of the contract regarding the construction of the new water supply network for the Regional Units of Lefkada, Preveza and Arta.

It is about the construction of a new network of pipelines, reservoirs and pumping stations, 104 kilometers long that will serve more than 150,000 inhabitants of the three Regional Units, replacing the existing aqueducts, which are not sufficient to cover the increased needs.

Mr. Mitsotakis expressed his satisfaction at the fact that national infrastructure projects “have passed from the study and planning phase to the implementation and delivery phase” in order to “make the lives of Greek men and women better”.

The prime minister’s speech in detail:

“Mr. Regional Governors, Mr. Mayors, dear colleagues in the government and in the Parliament,

Let me start by congratulating the leadership of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport, but also all the local actors, especially of Lefkada, the District Governor, the Mayor, your MP, for the very good coordination and the speed with which we moved, in order to we arrive today at the happy moment of signing this extremely important work.

A project which, as Nikos Tachiaos said, obliged us as a government to “dive” deep into the Public Investment Program, in order to be absolutely certain that we secure its necessary funding.

I say this because the government’s original planning was to include this project in the Recovery Fund. But when it became apparent that, no matter how fast we ran, we would not be able to meet the suffocating deadlines of the Recovery Fund, we took the political decision to finance this very important project entirely from national resources.

And we did it because precisely in the prioritization of projects at the national level, the projects that are related to the correct, to the proper management of water, always come first, for reasons that I think you fully understand.

Mitsotakis

The work, which will begin construction immediately, is one of the largest new water supply projects in our country. It will cover the needs of 150 thousand of our fellow citizens, primarily the needs of Lefkada. At the same time, however, it is also a project, Mr. Regional Governors, which unites three Regional Units, taking water from the springs of Agios Georgios and transporting it to Lefkada, in order to be able to create a water supply infrastructure for this entire region, which will it will stand the test of time, it will withstand the great challenges of the climate crisis and it will ensure sustainable development for many decades in all the areas it covers.

As you know, climate crisis he is with us now. You see its consequences every day around us. One of its consequences has to do with the fact that we are no longer absolutely certain that what was true of rainfall in the past will still be true in the future. This obliges us, each and every one, to be doubly careful in water management.

This concerns everyone: the central state, which builds infrastructures that ensure minimal leaks but also good water quality, relieving the aquifer of Lefkada from the many drillings. However, this initiative also concerns the Local Government, the Municipalities and the communities and ultimately each individual citizen.

We must learn to treat water as a precious commodity. Not to waste it thoughtlessly and to change, I would say, our whole mindset about the way we consume it. This does not only concern this project, it concerns our entire country.

I am absolutely sure, ladies and gentlemen, that this project will be completed even faster than the projected schedule. I think the Minister said it well, and the origin of many TERNA executives from Lefkada will also help in its own way, so that we can achieve the goal of delivering this project within these four years of the New Democracy. And I am sure that this goal will be achieved.

In closing, let me express my satisfaction for the fact that other important projects related to the development of Lefkada have either been completed or are progressing at great speed.

Mitsotakis

The road that connects the Amfilochia with Preveza, Amvrakia Odos, it has now been completed and delivered in full operation since last June. And at a very fast pace – you will see it every time you leave Lefkada -, the part that will finally connect Lefkada with Aktio, but also with Amvrakia Odos, is being completed, so that we can, until end of 2024, at the latest until the beginning of 2025, to ensure that access to Lefkada will be fast and absolutely safe.

And this image that I saw today, coming towards Lefkada, is an image, ladies and gentlemen, that I encounter throughout our homeland. I said five years ago that our goal is to turn Greece into a vast construction site. We see this construction site wherever we look around us today. We have already passed from the phase of study and planning to the phase of implementation and delivery of many important projects of national, regional and local scope, which make the lives of Greek men and women better.

This is the purpose of our policy. This is the central priority that our government serves. The trust with which the Greek people surrounded us in the elections of June 2023 compels us to run even faster. To implement our program, to correct imperfections and problems of the past, to plan and implement, guided by fiscal constraints and always making the right political choices.

Let me close, since we talked about water, Mr. District Governor, by telling you that the water supply of Corfu will be the next big challengewhich we want to look at again, from scratch, to see how we can deal with this issue in a meaningful, permanent and sustainable way.

Hopefully, we will be here again for the official handover of this very important work. Thank you very much”.

For his part, the Minister of Infrastructure and Transport Christos Staikouras pointed out the following:

“With this project, the coverage of the current and future water needs of the served areas is achieved, as well as the reduction of over-pumping of water from wells, as a result of which the qualitative and quantitative characteristics of the water systems of the region are improved.”

“We will save water losses, we will have the best possible use of water, we will be able to have more control over water, which is very basic in the management of this good that concerns us all”, noted the Deputy Minister of Infrastructure and Transport Nikos Tachiaos.

Government sources emphasize the following regarding the identity of the project:

The new network of pipelines, reservoirs and pumping stations, 104 kilometers long, will serve more than 150,000 inhabitants of the three Regional Units, replacing the existing water pipelines, which are insufficient to meet the increased needs.

It is designed to cover the peak daily demand of the summer season, when the population of the area increases sharply, for a period of 40 years.

The new infrastructure will minimize the losses found today, which are estimated at 30%, resulting in the saving of valuable water resources, while thanks to the rational distribution of water, over-pumping phenomena from wells will be dealt with.

The project is expected to be completed in 2027.

Finally, it should be noted that the Prime Minister had the opportunity earlier to visit the works on the road network connecting Aktio with Lefkada and toured the center of Lefkada, where he spoke with citizens, tourists, businessmen and workers in catering and tourism.

Afterwards, Mr. Mitsotakis presided over meetings with the representatives of the Local Government and the agencies of the region.