The company’s managing director, George Papanastasiou, said the investment – expected to be complete by mid 2014 – was in the range of €300 million and was expected to open over 300 new job positions by December.

He added that more positions would open in the course of time for the various services to support the terminal, and other shipping activities.

The Ports Authority is expected to make around €18 million a year from the various port duties, while the state will gain added revenue from the customs duties and taxes, paid by companies using the terminal to trade their products.Papanastasiou said Cypriot consumers would also benefit, due to reduced fuel prices, as the VTT Vasiliko terminal is expected to reinforce competition as it will be used by companies that currently don’t operate in the Cypriot market.

Work on the terminal started last April and it is expected to be completed in the first half of 2014, said Papanastasiou.

It will initially have the capacity to store 357,000 cubic metres of oil (gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, gasoil and mazut), then as the second phase of the project is complete, it will have a 643,000 cubic metre capacity.

There is also room for a future upgrade, bringing its capacity up to 900,000 cubic metres. It will include a marine jetty with four berths. The jetty will extend offshore for 1,200m and will include two loading arms per berth per product, capable of loading/discharging 1250 m³/h per product.

Papanastasiou said the terminal was expected to serve some 550 ships a year.So far, works are underway on the administration building, the customs area and other services, as well as on eight tanks. The foundations have been created for another 11 tanks, while VTT Vasiliko has managed to secure connecting land to build a further eight.

Furthermore, the geotechnical survey on the jetty is complete and works will start on that imminently.

Last November, VTTI (to which VTT Vasiliko is a subsidiary) was forced to respond to reports suggesting there was a conflict of interest from the potential participation of the company in the construction and management of the oil storage terminal at the Vasilikos Energy Centre. VTTI said that oil storage terminals, by nature, do not affect competition in a market as the owner/operating company of the terminal is in control of the storage infrastructure rather than the oil stored within it.

“The aim and priority of VTT Vasiliko Ltd is the development and operation of its private terminal that will be erected in Vasilikos and not any other similar project in Cyprus,” a statement said.

It said the main activity of the private terminal would be storing fuels for companies, the majority from abroad, which do not have commercial operations in Cyprus and are competitors to each other. 

“This demonstrates that there is no issue of monopoly or ‘conflict of interest’ if VTTI is selected to participate in the oil storage terminal at the Vassilikos Energy Centre,” the company said.