Greece and France weigh new route for Crete-Cyprus cable amid Turkish marine park dispute

by · Greek City Times

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Greece and France are considering rerouting the Great Sea Interconnector, the planned electricity cable linking Crete with Cyprus, to avoid Türkiye’s newly declared Fethiye-Kaş marine park near Kastellorizo (Meis), according to Kathimerini.

Greece does not recognise the Turkish marine park, which was declared in August 2026, and disputes any implications it may have for Greek sovereign rights or activities in the area.

The development comes as France takes greater control of the €2 billion-plus project.

French infrastructure investment firm Meridiam acquired a 66% stake in the project in August, while French cable manufacturer Nexans has been selected to carry out the cable installation. A French-flagged survey vessel is also expected to be used for the remaining seabed surveys.

Athens and Paris have agreed that Greece will notify Türkiye about the planned survey operations rather than seek Ankara’s permission.

The position is based on Greece’s interpretation of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), under which submarine cables can be laid and surveyed in relevant international waters without requiring the consent of a coastal state.

However, a significant portion of the preparatory work remains unfinished.

Around 40% of the seabed surveys have yet to be completed, including work in sensitive waters east of Kasos where Turkish warships disrupted Greek survey operations in 2024.

Greece is also examining whether to extend its territorial waters to 12 nautical miles south and west of Crete before the survey programme resumes.

The possible rerouting would seek to avoid the Turkish-declared marine park while allowing the strategically important electricity link to move forward, without implying Greek recognition of the park.

No new date has yet been fixed for the resumption of the surveys.

The Great Sea Interconnector is designed to connect the electricity grids of Greece, Cyprus and Israel, with the Cyprus section representing a major strategic and energy link for the island.

Source: Kathimerini

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