Vafeades defends ‘separate but parallel’ Larnaca port and marina redevelopment

Transport Minister Alexis Vafeades on Saturday moved to defend the government’s decision to split the project to redevelop Larnaca’s port and marina into two, saying that the two projects will be “separate but parallel” in their execution.

He said that under the initial plans, in which the redevelopment of both was considered one project, “one development would occur at the expense of the other”.

In addition, he said he has no concerns regarding the future of the project, stressing that “the state will proceed with its implementation”.

The government announced in November 2024 that the development of Larnaca’s port and marina would be split into two projects.

That decision came after the government had in May of the same year terminated its agreement with Kition Ocean Holdings, the company it had initially entrusted with a combined project which was set to cost €1.2 billion.

The contract was terminated after the government accused Kition of refusing to pay a requisite financial guarantee for the project’s operation and maintenance. The government had insisted Kition pay a total of €8m, while Kition believed the figure had been agreed at €4.2m.

In January this year, the government placed the Hellenic Republic Asset Development Fund (HRADF) in the driving seat of the port and marina development projects, with the company now set to play a key role in deciding the next steps for both sites.

HRADF currently operates a number of ports in Greece, including Alexandroupoli, Lavrio and Volos, Kavala’s commercial Philip II port, and the Corfu megayacht marina.

Vafeades’ latest comments come after he had expressed confusion last week over Larnaca mayor Andreas Vyras’ decision to stage a protest over perceived delays in progress on the two projects.

“I had already agreed with Mr Vyras [that] the matter would follow a specific implementation path and that at the end of the month, they would present the results of the study concerning land development,” he said.

However, he said, “Mr Vyras decided on a different course”, though he said that the government will nonetheless “continue to work in this direction, upon which we had agreed”.

“I believe that what we had said continues to apply,” he said, before adding that the government will “continue to produce results so that we can proceed with the implementation of the project”.

“Although Mr Vyras seems to disagree, I insist that we should not wait for all the studies to be finished to start the projects, which are not in dispute,” he said.

He then added that the ports authority has already been given the green light to begin consultations to implement the marina’s development.

“Our job is to move it forward and this is the government’s intention – to move it forward. If there has been a delay in this study, that burden is mine to bear, and I understand that. I apologise to Larnaca, but that does not mean that we have the right to delay this work any longer,” he said.

He added that in pushing on immediately with work to redevelop the marina, the government will “show the people of Larnaca that we are moving forward” and “not create delays like this which may set us back two or three months for this project”.

Vyras’ discontent is sourced from what he perceives as a lack of clarity regarding development plans related to the marina, while he also lamented what he described as gaps in a study on the matter submitted by Greece’s national investment fund, GrowthFund.

He has said that GrowthFund’s study does not adequately address the matter of land development.

In addition, he has decried perceived delays in progress on the project and what he has called a lack of coordination between state institutions.