Meridiam takes 66% as Cyprus awaits costs

France's Meridiam now holds a 66% majority stake in the Great Sea Interconnector, the undersea power cable designed to connect Cyprus to the European electricity grid for the first time. The ownership change is real. The contract terms that allocate risk between investors and consumers are not public.

Five days after the signing in Athens, no acquisition price, equity commitment, board structure or clause saying who pays extra costs has been disclosed (Philenews, Baird Maritime). The project is estimated at roughly €1.9 billion (Kathimerini Cyprus). About €657 million comes from the EU's Connecting Europe Facility (a grant programme for cross-border infrastructure), leaving more than €1.2 billion to be covered by equity, debt, or charges added to electricity bills (Knews Kathimerini). As we reported last week, Cyprus's opposition immediately demanded disclosure, and the European Commission confirmed the deal has not been formally notified for merger review — the procedural step that starts the EU competition check.

The Missing Risk Map

The 5 August signing paired Meridiam's entry with a parallel agreement for cable manufacturer Nexans to restart seabed surveys along the roughly 898-kilometre route (Greek PM, Balkan Green Energy News). ADMIE, Greece's grid operator, keeps 34%, technical leadership and future cable operation (Politis). Whether ADMIE holds veto rights over specific decisions is not disclosed.

Both majority investor and cable manufacturer are now French. Replacing a single state-linked sponsor with a long-term infrastructure fund makes the project easier to finance on paper (EUAlive). But "easier to finance" is not the same as "financed," and no final investment decision has been taken.

Cyprus May Pay First

Costs are split 63% Cyprus, 37% Greece, placing the heavier per-capita burden on roughly one million Cypriot consumers versus ten million Greek ones (Cyprus Mail). Energy minister Michalis Damianos welcomed Meridiam but warned that the cable does not automatically mean cheaper electricity — prices could rise depending on final terms (Euronews). He said Cyprus would wait for a European Investment Bank due-diligence study before deciding on direct state participation (Sigmalive).

According to Politis, Nicosia was caught off guard by the Athens announcement and remains undecided on whether to enter the project company (Politis). Both main opposition parties — AKEL and DISY — demanded full cost data before Cyprus takes on new obligations (PafosNet).

Three gates still closed

The Turkish maritime risk that halted seabed surveys near Kasos-Karpathos in 2024 remains unresolved. No new Greek NAVTEX (a maritime safety notice authorising survey operations) has been confirmed (Cyprus Mail). That matters financially: according to Philenews, a Greek NAVTEX could trigger two €25 million Cypriot payments to ADMIE under the existing intergovernmental arrangement (Philenews). As Les Echos framed it, Meridiam adds French geopolitical weight but does not neutralise a contested sea (Les Echos).

The Commission has not received a formal merger notification (CNA). The EIB study that Cyprus treats as a precondition is incomplete. Meridiam's entry makes abandonment less likely and financing more plausible. It does not prove the project will be built at the cost currently assumed. Until the EIB study, merger filing and shareholder agreement are public, Cyprus is being asked to trust a financing structure whose risk allocation it cannot see.