Director of Cyfield Construction, Kyriakos Chrysochos on Thursday expressed his willingness to reach a settlement to continue work on upgrades to Akamas’ road network, despite the current suspension and contract termination issues.

Speaking to StockWatch, Chrysochos emphasised his company’s readiness to cooperate for the project’s completion. “I am willing to explore a formula that will allow us to finish the work for the good of Akamas,” he stated.

Chrysochos explained that Cyfield was compelled to terminate the contract on December 23, 2024, citing two main reasons. The first was the lack of response from the forestry department after Cyfield requested permission to return to the construction site following an 84-day work suspension stipulated in the contract.

“Back in April, we were asked to make corrections to existing work that had been halted. After completing the corrections, I sent a letter to the forestry department, requesting to resume construction. Instead, the department’s director suggested a discussion for an amicable contract termination. However, the discussion led nowhere, as the director abruptly ended the meeting without providing any explanation,” Chrysochos said.

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The second reason for the contract termination was non-payment. According to Chrysochos, Cyfield has not received payment for work completed since December 2024. The amount owed is €500,000, which, after deducting a €300,000 performance guarantee, leaves €200,000 outstanding.

Chrysochos referred to the terms of the contract, stating, “If 56 days pass after the project engineer issues a payment certificate and the employer fails to pay, the contractor can issue a warning. If no response is received within 14 days, the contractor has the right to terminate the contract due to the employer’s fault.”

Despite the ongoing contractual disputes, Chrysochos reiterated Cyfield’s willingness to resolve the matter and resume work. “We are prepared to complete the project, to avoid further loss of time and money and for the sake of public interest,” he said.

Following Cyfield’s termination notice, the forestry department also issued a termination letter on January 4, 2025. Chrysochos noted the redundancy of this action, given that the contract had already been terminated by Cyfield.

On Wednesday, Agriculture Minister Maria Panayiotou had told the House environment committee that the contract is in the process of being terminated.

She added that this would not affect the initial plans for the completion of the project by 2027, but that the project would be completed with a reduced environmental footprint and under strict observation.

“Our aim remains to complete the project by 2027, as was the initially planning, with a reduced environmental footprint and strict environmental supervision. Akamas is not a project but an environmental treasure which we want to preserve,” she said.

The government and Cyfield had signed the contract to upgrade Akamas’ road network under former President Nicos Anastasiades in September 2022, and the contract’s cancellation is the latest of a growing number of Anastasiades-era public contracts to be cancelled under his successor Nikos Christodoulides.

The contracts for both the road between Paphos and Polis Chrysochous and the for the development of the Liopetri river were torn up within the space of 24 hours in November, while contracts for both the Vasiliko liquefied natural gas terminal and the Larnaca marina were terminated by the government last summer.