ATHENS: The government of Cyprus has changed the legal framework of the Cyprus Ports Authority (CPA), which will allow commercial operations at Limassol port to be privatised.
Thirty-one MPs voted to approve the bill, with 19 voting against plus one MP who abstained, the Cyprus Mail reports. The CPA will now be able to tender concessions or operating licences, with a likely tenure of 25 to 30 years, for commercial operations at the port.
Dubai’s DP World and Netherlands-based APM Terminals have both shown interest in operating container terminals at Limassol. The government aims to find investors for Limassol by the end of 2015 and sign an agreement in the first three months of 2016.
Cyprus hopes to raise €1 billion by 2016 by privatising several state enterprises, Limassol port being one of them, in order to pay down a €10billion bailout.
