"Unjustified and illegal" characterized the measures taken today by members of the Pancypriot Union of Coasters – who from 7.00 this morning closed the entry-exit of the port of Larnaca – the company Kition Ocean Holdings, which is oriented towards taking legal measures against them.
< p>In his statements, Panos Alexandrou, CEO of Kition Ocean Holdings, described today's events as "really sad" because as “a portion of our customers” explained, around 7-8 people spontaneously decided to close the entrance to the port of Larnaca, which is an unofficial entry and exit from the Republic. This particular port is in full operation and serves tens if not hundreds of companies based in Larnaca but also in Cyprus in general.
He called the measures taken by boat owners “unjustified” because in our opinion the increases in fees imposed are very small. The smallest increase we have for this type of boat is around 20 euros per month and the largest at 122 euros, monthly» he said and expressed his assessment that "I don't think that 120 euros per month is an amount that should have worried the professional owners of pleasure boats who do daily sea trips, with tickets from 20-40 euros per person".
According to Mr. Alexandrou, the owners are "concerned about the increases, they are worried about the service’ and that is why last week they were told that the specific increases will not be applied for at least three months and the matter will be discussed again after the end of the of these months. We also agreed to create a special corridor from which their customers will be able to board the boats and there will be a small car available in case there is a need to move their customers from the marina entrance to the boats and vice versa so that they are not inconvenienced.< /p>
The owners were also “granted free space to place their kiosks at the entrance of the marina, while the Municipality of Larnaca suggested that they be given free space on Finikoudes street to sell their tickets”.
Answering a related question, Mr. Alexandrou said that what “unfortunately cannot be done is to open the gate of the dock wide because at the moment there is a construction site and the public is not allowed to enter freely”. this since it is dangerous. There is no insurance company that will take that kind of risk, so we can't do it either. he said and explained that "the wharf needs a complete renovation, all the irons under it need to be changed and there is a huge risk that the wharf will even fall".
Referring to what boat owners claim that the wharf was closed for five months, the CEO of Kition said that “it was closed around the end of January and after the celebration of Epiphany, a day when there were hundreds of people on the wharf. While we had handed over the dock to the contractor at the end of January, additional studies emerged that needed to be done, such as that of the support, because it became clear that more work would have to be done than was originally calculated.
He further stated that "there is a delay of two months in the commencement of work on the wharf by the contractor, who moved his offices, rig, platform and generator there and the cost of the delay will be borne by Kition. We also have to answer to the Municipality of Larnaca and its citizens who expect to see the dock reopen and we have an obligation to finish it immediately.
Asked about the estimated damage that the company will suffer from the blockade of the port and how many ships have been affected, Mr. Alexandrou replied that "today we have 3-4 ships entering and leaving every day and if this situation continues, the company will it has a large cost of several hundreds of thousands of euros per week. However, together with the company, the users of the port will also suffer since it is used for the import of all animal feed into the Republic, for the import of iron as well as for the maintenance of vessels that serve the oil and gas companies in the area.
Asked to state whether the blockade of the port affects contracts of the Republic with other countries, related to defense and security, he said that "there are agreements with several embassies or with the armies of other countries that either bring their vessels for maintenance or for refueling at the port of Larnaca and will be affected. All users of the port without exception are affected by the specific movement of 8 people who with about 10 boats decided to take such measures.
He also noted that "for Kition's legal advisors these measures are illegal and they leave us no choice but to take legal measures against the owners of the boats that today block the entry-exit of the port of Larnaca.
Source: KYPE
