Cyprus Cable Stuck On NAVTEX

No maritime notice has yet been issued for seabed surveys on the Great Sea Interconnector route between Crete and Cyprus. The notice in question is a NAVTEX, the broadcast used to warn ships that survey work will take place in a defined sea area. It would have to name the coordinates, vessels and dates. So far, nothing has been published. Greek and Cypriot officials contacted in early August would neither confirm nor deny whether one was being prepared (Cyprus Mail). Briefings from Athens say Greece will coordinate with France. No document has appeared (Enikos).

That missing notice is now the practical test for the Great Sea Interconnector, the EU-backed submarine electricity cable meant to link Greece, Cyprus and, eventually, Israel. Brussels has already put nearly €658 million in grants behind it (CINEA). France's Meridiam now owns 66% of the project company, while Greece's grid operator ADMIE retains 34% (Enerdata). For Malta, where energy security still means living with the limits of island infrastructure and interconnectors, the lesson is familiar: political backing does not by itself put a survey ship at sea.

40% of the seabed is still unmapped

Before the cable can be laid, vessels have to map about 898 km of seabed, checking depth, terrain and hazards. The cable will use high-voltage direct current, or HVDC, the technology chosen for long submarine routes because it loses less energy over distance than alternating current (EU Global Gateway). Parts of the route run at depths of around 3,000 metres (HVDC World).

Roughly 60% of the surveys have been completed. The remaining 40% is in waters south of Kasos and southeast of Crete, where work stopped after a 2024 incident involving Turkish pressure (Ekathimerini). Even if a vessel is chartered by September, the remaining surveys could take 18 to 24 months, pushing that phase towards 2028 (Kathimerini). Cable-laying would only come after that. The contested area also overlaps with waters where Turkey recently declared marine parks, a move Athens says has no legal effect on Greek sovereign rights (Greek MFA).

Three things that haven't happened

The project has serious sponsors, but three steps remain unfinished. The European Commission has not received a merger notification for the Meridiam deal, which means Brussels has not yet reviewed whether the change in ownership raises competition concerns (CNA). Cyprus is still waiting for European Investment Bank due diligence before committing state funds. And there is still no final investment decision, the point at which sponsors put up capital and construction contracts are signed. Nexans, the cable manufacturer, said in January it remained committed, but warned that rescheduling would affect delivery dates (Nexans).

Who pays if costs rise

According to Phileleftheros, the Greece-Cyprus section has a reported cost of about €1.9 billion, split 63% Cyprus and 37% Greece after the EU grant. Cyprus, the EU's most electrically isolated member state, would get a backup power connection and access to cheaper generation. Nicosia has linked €25 million in annual payments, or €125 million over five years, to the NAVTEX as proof that the project is moving from paper to sea (Capital).

Whether Cypriot electricity bills rise depends on the regulator. It decides which project costs can be passed on to consumers through tariffs and which remain with the project company or the state. Former energy regulator chief Andreas Poullikkas argues that EU rules require grants and market revenues to be deducted first, so the cable does not automatically have to push up bills (Cyprus Mail). But of the roughly €251 million ADMIE says it has already spent, Cyprus's regulator has recognised only 32% as recoverable through bills (Politis). Nicosia is not taking ADMIE's spending ledger on trust. It remains unpublished who would absorb overruns from deep-water engineering, security escorts or further delays.

The Great Sea Interconnector is more credible than it was six months ago. It has named sponsors, EU money and a cable contractor. What it still does not have is the permission-and-risk package needed to send survey vessels back into contested water.