Work is underway to put the Larnaca marina’s redevelopment “back on track”, Transport Minister Alexis Vafeades said on Tuesday.

He was speaking after a meeting with the town’s mayor Andreas Vyras and representatives of Greek state-owned asset management company the Hellenic Republic Asset Development Fund (HRDAF), and promised that further such meetings would continue in the coming days.

In addition, he said, town councillors will now hold “consultations with the local community” regarding the marina’s future, and that a study into the matter would be conducted.

“We are confident that interesting views will be recorded and all of them will be taken into account for the further study of the project. We look forward to the next steps, which will see the government in continuous consultation with the local community on the recommendations and the findings of a study which will emerge thereafter,” he said.

Meanwhile, Vyras described the day’s meeting as “positive” and also expressed optimism regarding the planned consultations with the local community and study.

“It is positive that this discussion and study are starting because it is important to hear the views of the local community, to hear the views and the wishes of Larnaca,” he said.

He also said he hopes “we will soon be ready to start a project which will align with the wishes of Larnaca, for a project for which the people of Larnaca have been waiting for a very long time.

“Our goal is to see work begin in the area as soon as possible and successfully, so that both the people of Larnaca and every Cypriot can see the area helping the town’s economy and that of the country, as it should,” he said.

Vafeades was then asked whether the redevelopment project will begin next year, and his answer was that “we will have things to deliver” before the end of this year.

Vyras, meanwhile, said that “in parallel, we are also progressing with the project of reshaping a large area of the marina to connect it with the rest of the town and Europe square”, as well as the creation of a new nautical club, which he said will “help Larnaca immensely”.

Vafeades said that both of these two projects will “give new structure to Larnaca and shape a new urban centre, which is very important for everyone”.

The government had in January placed HRDAF in the driving seat of the port and marina development project, with the company now set to play a key role in deciding the next steps for both sites.

HRADF currently operates a number of ports in Greece, including Alexandroupoli, Lavrio and Volos, Kavala’s commercial Philip II port, and the Corfu megayacht marina.

The government announced a little over a year ago that the development of Larnaca’s port and marina would be split into two projects, while Vafeades also brought forward the expected date of completion to September 2026, compared to the previously estimated date of March 2027.

The move comes after the government in May last year terminated its agreement with Kition Ocean Holdings, the company it had initially entrusted with a combined project which was set to cost €1.2 billion.

The contract was terminated after the government accused Kition of refusing to pay a requisite financial guarantee for the project’s operation and maintenance.

The government had insisted Kition pay a total of €8m, while Kition believed the figure had been agreed at €4.2m.