The Public Power Corporation (PPC) said that there were no problems with electricity supply yesterday after a blast at its plant in Ptolemaida, northern Greece. At 12.46 p.m. an explosion occurred at the plant due to a problem with a high-pressure steam pipeline. No one was hurt in the blast because plant employees were taking a break. The company has ruled out foul play and said that the accident happened because of aging equipment.

Hammering out an energy policy...

A 60-year-old German pensioner living on the island of Rhodes has been accused of murdering his Austrian roommate, aged 54, by stabbing him in the stomach late on Tuesday after an argument, police said yesterday. The suspect, who has not been identified, turned himself in and said that he was drunk when he attacked the victim. A test confirmed the high alcohol content in his blood.

Police confiscated 106 kilos of cannabis in Kastoria, northern Greece, yesterday and arrested four people suspected of smuggling. The drugs were found in a car stopped at a forest area near the town of Kastoria, close to the Albanian border, police said. The driver, a Greek man, was arrested along with another man and two women, all Greeks, following in a second car.

British supergroup the Rolling Stones have canceled a performance in Athens originally scheduled for June 25 at the Olympic Stadium. The veteran act was forced to delay the European leg of its current world tour when guitarist Keith Richards underwent brain surgery several weeks ago after falling from a tree. Dates in Athens and several other European cities were originally postponed, but the veteran act ultimately opted to trim its itinerary. Refunds for the canceled Athens show will be available between August 5 and October 5 from the original points of purchase.

Five people were arrested in Thessaloniki yesterday accused of holding up 12 convenience stores across the northern Greek city in the last few months, police said. A 28-year-old man is believed to have led the gang who allegedly held up the stores using knives and fake guns. The suspects usually pocketed cigarettes and phone cards, police added.

Police said the nine members of a gang arrested Tuesday in connection to a series of bank robberies in Athens were expected to be charged late yesterday. The suspects include one woman and two men, a Greek and a Romanian national, who had escaped from prison while serving jail sentences for theft and murder. Police found Kalashnikov rifles, a sub-machine gun, two hand grenades and 30,000 euros in cash in the suspects’ possession.

Athens International Airport (AIA) and the Olympic Fuel Company said yesterday that they will reduce the price of fuel by 4 percent as of Saturday in a move to save companies refueling at the airport about 300,000 euros per year. AIA said that the fuel company has reduced its fees by 30 percent in the last two years, allowing airlines to save more than 3.2 million euros.

Two Albanian nationals were arrested in Thessaloniki in connection to the murder of a 22-year-old compatriot on February 20, police said yesterday. Authorities said that the two suspects, aged 25 and 40, allegedly began an argument with the victim regarding a woman. Four more men present at the time of the stabbing are also wanted, police added.

Two armed robbers made off with 2,000 euros after raiding a bank in Thessaloniki’s Votsi district yesterday morning, police said.