Significant discouraging factors were identified by interested parties and investors in the Ministry of Commerce proposal for the Science and Technology Park in Pentakomo, in the context of the relevant public consultation that took place recently at the premises of the Limassol Chamber of Commerce and Industry. They also emphasized that a clear business plan must be defined for this, if it is going to be attractive to international companies.
A case in point were the positions of the investor and member of the non-profit association Tech Island, Alexey Gubarev, who expressed frustration because, as he said, "the proposal that was presented is much worse than the previous one and this shows that there is no future for investment in the project". He indicated that participate in the competition, one is expected to spend €5-6 million on documents, while with the same money he recently bought, along with his with his partners, an area of 2 square kilometers, which corresponds to the area left in Pentakomo for the Technology Park. He also emphasized that there must be options for expansion.
Interested investors from China pointed out that speed is very important and that no one can wait two years for infrastructures to be created, given that, according to the Ministry, they are expected to be completed 18 months after the signatures. They pointed out that it will become more attractive if the state creates the infrastructure in advance, since otherwise the investment will amount to a big risk. One of them pointed out that his school in China was larger than the 2 square kilometers assigned to the Technology Park and wondered how much could be done in such a limited space. It was also proposed to associate the Technology Park with the blue economy due to Limassol's prominent position in global shipping, in addition to the setting up of a "working group" to run the project, so as not to get stuck in the cogs of bureaucracy.
A representative of the Pentakomo community pointed out that the image nowadays presented by the area intended for the Technology Park is "scary" and extremely discouraging for investors, due to the non-existence of even the minimum infrastructure. Kyriakos Hadjigiannis, president of the House Commerce Committee said that the committee has repeatedly discussed the matter, wishes to see progress, and noted that the Parliament remains at the disposal of the interested parties. Limassol Mayor Nicos Nicolaides called on the Ministry to come back with a more tangible – and credible-- proposal and let the experts put the final touches. At the end of the presentation, and in the form of a general conclusion, Limassol Chamber President Andreas Tsouloftas, emphasized that the government must invest more effort and money, in order to move the procedures faster.
