Establishment of a Passenger Maritime Link between Cyprus and Greece
The Cyprus Shipping Deputy Ministry has recently announced the inauguration of a tender process to re-establish a maritime passenger link between Cyprus and Greece, subsidised by State funds.
The ferry connection between Cyprus and Greece, previously operated until the year 2000. In light of the enormous expression of support from the general public, a policy decision by the Government of the Republic of Cyprus has been taken allowing the initiation of the process of reinstating the ferry connection.
The Shipping Deputy Ministry of the Republic of Cyprus is launching the tender with no. 13/2020 following the approval by the Directorate General for Competition of the European Commission in June 2020, which gave the green light on provision of national funds on the basis that passenger maritime transport services between Cyprus and Greece constitute a Service of General Economic Interest (SGEI). The passenger maritime link will be serving Cyprus (departing from either Limassol or Larnaca port) and the port of Piraeus (Terminal of Keratsini) for the transportation of passengers and of their private vehicles, with a possibility of introducing an intermediate call at one Greek island port on its way to its final destination.
The service will be performed by a Ro-Pax vessel which must be in compliance with various requirements including, inter alia, flying an EU/EEA flag, having a minimum capacity of 200 passengers (cabin capacity of 140 in case the trip duration will exceed the 16 hours), as well as complying with all international, community and national rules and regulations in respect of safety, security and environmental issues at all times.
As noted by the Cyprus Shipping Deputy Minister, Mr. Vassilios Demetriades in a recent public event organized by the Italian-Cypriot Chamber of Commerce, the maritime passenger link is expected to enrich the available means of transport and create a new market segment for consumers and travellers to and from Cyprus and Europe. The ferry link will be hugely advantageous to the region as a whole, which is why a public subsidy has been granted.
The deadline for receipt of tender applications or requests to participate is at 12:00 p.m. on the 29th of January 2021. For further details regarding the tender and process of application, please visit www.eprocurement.gov.cy and/or contact a member of our team.
