The new competitive project, concerning the maritime shipping interconnection Greece-Cyprus, which will start in the spring of 2022,
The Deputy Minister of Shipping of Cyprus, Vassilios Dimitriadis, presented on Thursday to executives of shipping companies and journalists, at the Piraeus Port Authority.

This tender project includes a grant of 5.5 million euros per year for 22 return services. According to the terms of the tender, the contractor to be selected will be able to receive the grant for three consecutive years, with its extension depending on the increase in the number of passengers, while it can start the execution of the routes from its holidays. . Easter, most likely April-May and then run 22 round trips on a weekly basis throughout the summer.

“This period has the greatest demand from passengers and tourists, while the ship that operates this route can approach the Royal Cruise Terminal in the port of Piraeus and in Cyprus in the port of Limassol, either Larnaca or both,” he said. Mr. Dimitriadis.

He stated that “for the Cypriot government, the Greek-Cypriot ferry connection is an extremely important undertaking and there is interest from both the Greek side and the Minister of Shipping and Island Policy, Giannis Plakiotakis”, while expressing the assessment that “this time the undertaking will succeed ».

Mr. Demitriadis stressed that the Republic of Cyprus has been making efforts for years with the support of the Greek government for the operation of the specific ferry connection that has been operating for over 21 years.

He added that the new line, beyond the semantic meaning, has offered the Cypriot and the Greek citizen alternative connectivity, as the island is connected to the other countries only by air.

He also stressed that the Cypriot government, with purely national resources, addressed the European Commission in order to impose the subsidy for the specific reopening of this ferry connection.

He has already stated that Israel and many Motorcyclists’ Associations, Associations and Clubs from Cyprus, Greece and Europe have been interested in its operation.

It should be noted that in the terms of the tender on the ferry connection there will be no option for a stopover on a Greek island, however these are tender Documents that the Successful Bidder may choose to make the Cyprus-Greece trip to a third neighboring country (a trip that will not receive a subsidy) such as Israel or countries other than Turkey.

It is noted that the companies that will express interest will have to submit their bids by January 28, 2002 while the terms of the tender can be found on the website of the Ministry of Shipping of Cyprus.

An important element of the new tender is that the selected shipping company that will be selected can receive the grant money on a monthly basis and not every quarter as was the condition in the 2020 tender.

The minimum carrying capacity of the ship can not accommodate at least 100 passengers and 60 people in cabins.

According to the tender data, the award criterion is the lowest price (100%).

The minimum quality criteria are provided as prerequisites in the Tender Documents for participation in the Tender.

The criterion for the ship’s EU / EEA flag must be met before the service is operational and not at the time of submission of the tender.

The successful tenderer may decide to replace the original vessel for the duration of the contract provided that:

-the ship for replacement meets or exceeds the minimum requirements of the ship.

-the prior approval of the Contracting Authority is obtained after a successful inspection of the ship.