THE SHORTAGE OF FUNDS SHORTCIRCUITS EVERYTHING

The building of Larnaca’s Marina is sinking in the shallow waters of economic poverty

A. LEFKARITIS: Waiting for the Banking Organisations

By St. Xiouri – A. Polycarpou

The development project of Larnaca Marina appears to be crashing on the reef of the economic crisis. Whilst the investor’s plans have been completed and the whole project was on a path of growth and materialisation, the prolonged economic depression has had a negative impact on developments, thus cutting off the implementation and promotion of the whole project which would set solid foundations for the development of nautical tourism.

As the man in charge of the Larnaca marina project, Mr. Christos Petrides, has informed us the problem was created when the investor, ZHNΩΝ Company, failed to get the necessary funding for the completion of the plans for Larnaca’s marina. According to Mr. Petrides, the matter was put on hold since the Council of Ministers has granted an extension in order to find sufficient funding to complete the project.

The specific project of the creation of the marina with the unified development of the port is an essential precondition for the repositioning of Cyprus on the map of nautical tourism. The economic standstill is blocking the completion of the goal set to enable our country to adopt this new form of progressive tourism that is deemed necessary for our country to enter into healthy competition for attracting new visitors to our shores.

The whole project has become even more difficult because of the shaky economic climate into which Cyprus has been led because of the inability of its banks to supply the necessary finances that would give the go-ahead for the start of the necessary works.

Finding a financier who would be able to assist financially and cover at least the initial expenses of the project, which would amount to tens of millions of Euros, seems impossible at the moment. Due to its economic state, Cyprus is unable to be a reliable investment centre and attract foreign investors. At the same time local financial institutions, such as banks, are unable to reinforce the attempt to transform the marina and the port in the city of Zenon.

As Mr. Akis Lefkaritis, one of the shareholders of ZHNΩΝ, has informed us, the problem is that Cyprus banks are waiting for their recapitalisation from the government whilst foreign capital owners are awaiting the developments that will follow the signing of the memorandum and for Troika.

The plans are there. The need for promoting the project is deemed necessary.

The benefits from the whole project will be much more than the expenses because, over time, there will be development of the whole port area as well as of the entire Larnaca Municipality. Parallel to that, tourism will change for the better with increased amounts of visitors and better services.

However, for the time being, the project is in danger of sinking in the shallow waters of the economic crisis and financial poverty.