Larnaca cruise hub bids after Cyprus elections

— €3 bln investment for port, marina, hotels

 

A decision is imminent on which of the three international consortia will undertake the massive development to transform the port of Larnaca into the Eastern Mediterranean’s leading cruise centre. The successful bidder, however, is not expected to be announced until after the presidential elections this month.

The ambitious project aims to link the port and marina with the famous Phinikoudes (Palm Tree) promenade, while shops, restaurants and real-estate development will go up making the port-area yet further tourist friendly.

The port presently has two berthing quays some 330m long each, a container yard of 220,000 sq.m., three stores, parking for 100 buses and a passenger terminal with a capacity to handle 400-500 passengers per ship. The latter came under excessive strain when the port had to accommodate ten times its capacity of foreign nationals fleeing Israel’s bombardment of Lebanon in the summer of 2006.

The port operates two pilot boats and three tug boats to help cruise or cargo ships manoeuvre themselves as the port’s inner turning circle is for 300m vessels, but the new project expects to increase this to 500m.

Only last week, the contracts were signed for the build-operate-transfer (BOT) contract worth 170 mln euros for the development of the new 1000-berth Limassol marina. The winning bidders were the joint venture Lemesos Marina Ltd., headed by Cybarco, J&P and J&P/Avax, Athena ATE, Francoudi & Stephanou, CADS Holdings and the Limassol Marina Development Company affiliated to the Limassol Chamber of Commerce.

Other contracts for the construction of marinas in Paphos and Ayia Napa are also in the pipeline.

The Paphos marina will be situated in Potamites Kissonerga and will have a 1000-yacht capacity, with the process for the tender at its final stage.
The Ministry of Commerce Industry and Tourism is advancing the negotiations with the bidder for the Ayia Napa marina which will have a 600-yacht capacity.

According to OffRadar, the weekly cruise, ferry and shipping review, whichever of the three consortia wins the DBFO (design – build –finance – operate) contract, will take Larnaca forward into a new era, managing and operating the new cruise facility for the next 35 years. Coupled with the construction of a new airport just ten minutes away, the project will firmly place Larnaca at the forefront of cruise tourism.

Running in parallel with the cruise port project is the building of a new marina, 5-star hotels, leisure and retail development, all linked via a promenade to ‘down town’ Larnaca and its beaches. The ambitious project is expected to be completed five years from contract award. Phase One of the project, the new cruise port and marina is costing €1 bln, but the final bill for all areas is expected to be around €3 bln.

A vision of the new cruise and tourism era for Larnaca was given to 200 delegates at a conference in London last week, during which Grant Holmes, CEO of Progress Cyprus Tourism and Business Services Ltd outlined the port’s plans to become a homeport for cruise ships and the area’s cruise hub.

Holmes said that “Larnaca possesses the ideal conditions to become a home port serving the Eastern Mediterranean, Greek Islands, Black Sea and the Holy Lands, with particular attraction to British, German and Cypriot cruise lines.

The Larnaca cruise message is already reaching the industry as an unnamed UK operator is expected to operate three cruises out of the port this April, the OffRadar report said.

The decision on the winning bidder will be made by the Government, and details of the proposed development of the port are under wraps, although plans include two modern cruise terminals and alongside berths for seven ships.

The three consortia bidding for this project involve some of the biggest names in the shipping/cruise industry, including Louis Cruise Lines, Costa Crociere and the specialist divisions of Amsterdam Port and the Port of Singapore Authority.

Consortium A is led by Cypriot-based A. Vouros Investment and its partners include Singapore Cruise Centre Pte, DP Architects Ltd, Joannou & Parakevaides and J&P Avax SA.

Consortium B is the Larnaca-Zenon Consortium and its partners include French construction company Bouygues Batiments International, Iacovou Brothers, Amsterdam Logistics Group BV, Lievense Consulting Engineering, Louis Private Ltd, Petrolina (Holdings) Public Ltd and Marinaman Ltd. This consortium is also believed to include Costa Crociere.

Consortium C is led by Cypriot-based DJK Group and includes Camper & Nicholsons Marinas Ltd, Parsons Brickenhoff, Odell International LLC, Viset Malta plc, Economic Research Associates, WATG, DEPFA Bank plc, Colliers CRE and McGuireWoods LLP.