Apostolos Tomaras
In May 2021, then-Transport Minister Yiannis Karousos described the signing of contracts for the first phase of the Paphos–Polis Chrysochous road as a historic day. The road would bring the island’s western communities closer to the rest of Cyprus. Five and a half years later, all that remains of those grand announcements are the commemorative photographs: handshakes, smiles and officials posing for the occasion.
What remains of an ambitious project intended to breathe new life into the entire Paphos district is the wear and tear on the unfinished work left behind by the original contractor, Greek company Intrakat. The termination of its contract in November 2024 officially put the project on ice. As in other similar cases, the Transport Ministry’s and Public Works Department’s overly optimistic predictions of a swift resumption proved hollow. Two years after the project officially ground to a halt, its future remains uncertain, and no one can say with even reasonable confidence when construction will resume.
“We can’t even build a footpath, let alone a Paphos–Polis highway” --DIKO lawmaker Chrysanthos Savvides
The search for a new contractor has moved so slowly that the usual descriptions of bureaucratic delay no longer do it justice. There is now a real risk that the latest attempt will also come to nothing—an outcome that construction industry sources say could bury the prospect of a modern road serving western Paphos. And as if that were not enough, even improvement works on sections of the existing road have run into trouble, with the Public Works Department refusing to accept them.
The new bids
In November 2024, the government decided to terminate the contract and remove the contractor. Since then, the Public Works Department has taken two full years to prepare a new tender and find a replacement to complete the half-finished work Intrakat left behind.
Two construction companies expressed interest in the new tender: Cypriot-owned Cyfield Construction Limited, which has experience in major public projects, and Lebanese-owned Araco Construction Cy Limited, which had undertaken the widening and upgrading of the existing Paphos–Polis Chrysochous road.
When the bids were opened last April, they came as a shock to the Transport Ministry and the Public Works Department. Both were €30 million higher than the original contract awarded to Intrakat. Cyfield Construction submitted a bid of €124,850,000, while Araco Construction’s bid stood at €128,935,480.
The evaluation
Opening the bids dashed any hopes that restarting the project would cost something close to the original contract price.
With the handling of the project threatening to develop into a scandal, the Transport Ministry pointed to the evaluation process, making the protection of the public interest its watchword. Yet it knew that even negotiations with the two bidders could not bring their offers down to a level that would justify awarding the contract without officials risking having to explain their decisions.
Despite mounting time pressure, seven months have passed and the relevant committee has yet to complete its evaluation. Reports leaked over the summer suggested that the Public Works Department would enter negotiations with the interested companies last month. However, according to more recent information obtained by Kathimerini from the Transport Ministry, the evaluation is now expected to be completed within a month, with the submission of the committee’s report.
The possible outcomes
In the best-case scenario, if the evaluation of the two bids is completed within the expected timeframe, the Transport Ministry and the Public Works Department are likely to try to lower the final price by using the threat of canceling the tender as a bargaining chip.
Local representatives in Paphos say such a move would be suicidal for the project. Construction companies, meanwhile, warn that canceling the process and launching another tender would drive the cost even higher.
The prospect increasingly haunting the Transport Ministry and the Public Works Department is that the Paphos–Polis Chrysochous road could become another Nicosia General Hospital, where the final cost exceeded the budget.
Calls for an investigation
Local representatives in Paphos are already raising concerns about mismanagement and calling for investigations.
Droushia Deputy Mayor Sotiris Koupparis believes the Public Works Department’s plan to find a new contractor will fail and says those responsible for the situation must be identified and held accountable.
“There must be accountability when taxpayers will have to pay an additional €50 million. As I see it, the project will not go ahead. They will do nothing.”
Koupparis is urging the government to make the political decision needed to get the project moving, initially completing a two-lane road to meet the district’s basic needs.
Construction industry sources consider the prospect of the Public Works Department securing a bid below €100 million to be wishful thinking. Even if an agreement were reached, they point out, the amounts already paid to Intrakat, together with the claims the company is pursuing through the courts, mean it is hardly far-fetched to suggest that the total cost of the first phase could reach or even exceed €200 million.
“We can’t even build a footpath, let alone a Paphos–Polis highway”
Adding another layer to the troubled Paphos–Polis Chrysochous road project are the improvement works being carried out on sections of the existing road.
The Public Works Department is refusing to accept a section between Mesogi and Tsada, where the road is being widened, because of problems with the road surface laid by the contractor.
The matter recently went before the House Transport Committee, where technical problems, poor workmanship and delays were highlighted. Several committee members argued that the Transport Ministry could provide answers on neither the completion date nor the final cost.
The parliamentary discussion revealed that the new road surface is uneven and that the contractor is refusing to carry out repairs. Under the contract, the work should have been handed over in January 2026.
The Transport Ministry has made clear that if the contractor does not make the repairs, the Public Works Department will carry them out and deduct the cost from the final payment under the contract.
One particularly telling remark came from DIKO lawmaker Chrysanthos Savvides: “We can’t even build a footpath, let alone a Paphos–Polis Chrysochous highway.”
He also said the Public Works Department had acknowledged problems with the Mesogi–Tsada section during the committee meeting. Savvides warned that safety was at stake and called on the department to put the work right.
“Lives are at risk. Today, at the Transport Committee, which took up the matter on its own initiative, the Public Works Department acknowledged what had already been said publicly. The road is unfit for use,” he said.
