Doing Business in Cyprus (UAE Edition)

DOING BUSINESS C YPRUS
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UNITED ARAB EMIRATES EDITION
Aphrodite is now expected in 2026. Since the start of the pandemic, activity and works
worth US$200 million have been completed in Cyprus’ EEZ by oil and gas companies,
underlining their continued commitment to Cyprus.
In addition to offshore discoveries in the last decade, a range of other new energy
opportunities have come to the fore. In December 2019, Cyprus signed a landmark
deal with a Chinese-led consortium to build a €290 million LNG import terminal at
Vassilikos. The consortium constructing the project includes China Petroleum Pipeline
Engineering CO LTD, Metron SA, Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding and Wilhelmsen
Ship Management. The terminal will include a floating storage and regasification unit
(FSRU), a jetty for mooring the FSRU and related infrastructure at Vassilikos. The FSRU,
expected to be completed in 2023, attracted €150 million in finance from the European
Investment Bank (EIB), €80 million from the European Bank for Reconstruction and
Development (EBRD), €101 million from the EU’s Connecting Europe Facility as well as
an equity contribution of €43 million from the Electricity Authority of Cyprus (EAC).
Parallel to this, Cyprus has been ramping up its renewables capacity, with support
from the EU’s €1.2 billion Recovery and Resilience Facility (RFF). The renewable energy
sector could be one of the most attractive areas for investment and joint ventures
with other countries. For example, Israel has been interested in cooperating with its
Cypriot counterparts in establishing pilot projects where new Israeli tech could be
tested in Cyprus. Also, the UAE and Saudi Arabia have been pioneers in clean energy,
especially in the field of hydrogen, and are keen to export its RES know-how and create
synergies. For example, Saudi Arabia – dubbed to become one of the biggest producers
of clean energy – could support the EU’s
hydrogen strategy through Cyprus as
ICyprus has been ramping
up its renewables capacity,
with support from the EU’s
€1.2 billion Recovery and
Resilience Facility (RFF)
an interconnector to Saudi’s biggest
hydrogen production plant currently
under construction. The long-awaited full
liberalisation of the electricity production
market in Cyprus has seen many delays,
but once this materialises it would