Matthew Caruana Galizia hints that Electrogas defaulting on €600 Million loan could be the motive behind his mother’s assassination

Electrogas defaulting on a major €600 million government-guaranteed loan and triggering a collapse in the government’s credit rating could be a motive behind the murder of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, her son has hinted in a social media post.

Writing on social media following the testimony of the permanent secretary at the Finance Ministry, Alfred Camilleri, in a public inquiry related to the murder, Matthew Caruana Galizia published documents describing the bridge-loan as a “serious and urgent matter”.

Daphne and her son were working on an extensive Electrogas leak at the time of her murder, with the revelation that director and main suspect Yorgen Fenech was the owner of 17 Black hot on their tail.

If their investigations continued, Caruana Galizia said, Electrogas would have failed compliance tests by banks and would have gone into liquidation.

“The default on the €600 million loans would have triggered a collapse in the government’s credit rating, because the government was liable, through the government guarantee”.

“The government would have been unable to pay off the skyrocketing interest on its other loans, and the government of Malta would have been in default, reduced to Argentinian status, and without a power station.”

“What greater motive would the people involved have needed to commit murder?” he said.

Earlier, Camilleri insisted that he was concerned about the issuing of the bank guarantee to the Electrogas consortium.

An email exchange with various stakeholders like Konrad Mizzi shows that Camilleri requested an urgent meeting on the issue.

It’s since been revealed that there was even a €28,000 party to celebrate the loan extension at Level 22, the club on the top floor of Fenech’s Portomaso Tower.

The 138-person guest list was filled with illustrious figures, including former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, his wife Michelle, Charlene Farrugia Bianco and Neville Gafa.

Fenech was one of three ElectroGas directors and a principal shareholder. The consortium was selected to build and operate the LNG power station in Delimara in October 2013, with a deal eventually signed in April 2015.