The project for a new ski resort in Cyprus's Troodos Mountains, due to open at the end of 2024, may remain on paper.
Andreas Eleftheriou, head of the committee for the new building, said recently that all work had been put on hold due to a lack of funding. Eleftheriou said that shortly after the new government took over the management of the Cyprus Ski Federation, he received a notice from the Ministry of Finance refusing to provide a €2 million sponsorship.
It is recalled that on 20 October 2022, the Cyprus Ski Federation signed a contract with a construction company to build a new ski complex on the slope of Mount Olymbos, in the area of the Sun Valley slope. The project envisaged the construction of a modern 2-storey building with an area of 1260 m2. It would house a ski hire shop, a 500 m2 cafe-restaurant, public rooms, a conference hall and a children's academy. A large car park was also planned for the convenience of visitors.
The cost of the project was estimated at €3.7 million, of which €2 million was provided by the Cypriot government.
It took 2 years to realise this grandiose idea. It was supposed to be ready for the 2024 winter season. But now its fate is very much in doubt. According to Eleftheriou, the project has been frozen, but the contract with the contractor has not yet been cancelled. The Cyprus Ski Federation is trying to find a way to restart the project.
It should be noted that the ski resort in Cyprus is located at an altitude of between 1700 and 1880 metres.
The resort has several slopes of different levels of difficulty: 'green', 'blue', 'red' and 'black', divided into several ski zones - Sun Valley 1 and 2, and North Face 1 and 2. There is a separate slope for snowboarders and several cross-country ski runs. The slopes are served by 4 lifts with 'talking' names: Aphrodite, Hera, Hermes and Zeus.
