Larnaca marina cannot be transferred directly to the Cyprus Ports Authority (CPA) and must instead be put out to tender, the Law Office of the Republic told parliament’s Transport Committee on Thursday, upending plans to hand the marina to the authority. If the CPA wants to take on the project, it will have to submit a bid.
Rena Papaeti, representing the Law Office, said the marina and its land belong to the state and that developing the marina requires a tender.
She said the legal opinion given to the transport ministry ends with three or four questions about the possible risk of legal action by Kition if the ownership status changes. The part of the opinion containing the legal analysis can be put before parliament, she said.
Transport Minister Evi Tsolaki told the committee that her ministry received the opinion on 9 October. According to Tsolaki, it found no problem with transferring the port, but a legal obstacle in the case of the marina, where the transfer “is prohibited”. She added that the port and the marina should be developed under separate plans to ensure both projects are viable.
Parliament members spoke of a scandal, while Larnaca deputy mayor Iasonas Iasonides warned: “If what the Law Office is telling us goes ahead, we are burying the project.” He called on the minister to step in and take a political decision.
Tsolaki said she would meet the Law Office later on Thursday to seek further clarification of the opinion and explore alternatives to overcome the legal obstacle. Both she and the CPA assured the committee that the roadmap for developing Larnaca port and marina remained on schedule.
Late appearance
At the start of the session, committee chairman Sotiris Ioannou said the Law Office had been invited but had informed the committee only that day that it could not send a representative, without giving a reason. Ioannou called this “unacceptable” and said written explanations would be requested.
AKEL parliament member Andreas Pasiourtides accused the Law Office of undermining and mocking parliament and of showing disrespect for institutions. ALMA parliament member Irene Charalambides said its absence had left the transport minister exposed, as she had to answer critical legal questions affecting the project.
Papaeti arrived shortly before the end of the session. She said she had been in a meeting with the transport ministry’s director general on a different matter.
