The European Investment Bank has once again clarified that it has not received any formal financing request from Cyprus for the Great Sea Interconnector — a key point reported by FastForward on October 15 and now reaffirmed by EIB Vice President Kyriakos Kakouris in an interview with the Cyprus News Agency.

In the wide-ranging interview marking the end of his term, Kakouris addressed several strategic priorities for Cyprus and the Eastern Mediterranean, including the role of the EIB in energy and water projects. When asked about the Great Sea Interconnector (GSI), he reiterated that “the Bank has not yet received an official financing request” and that any such application “will be assessed according to the Bank’s policies, priorities, and technical, economic, and environmental criteria.”

This statement directly aligns with FastForward’s report last week, in which a senior EIB source clarified that “no formal financing request has been submitted to the EIB, and therefore no conclusion has been reached regarding potential financing eligibility or viability.”

The clarification came after Finance Minister Makis Keravnos told Parliament during his presentation of the 2026 state budget that the EIB had “refused to finance” the GSI due to doubts about its economic sustainability — a claim that the Bank effectively denied.

FastForward’s report explained that the EIB’s previous review of the project, conducted in 2023, was never meant to determine whether the Interconnector was “financially viable” for the Republic of Cyprus itself, but whether it was eligible for EIB funding under its own standards. Without an official financing application, the Bank cannot reach any judgment on eligibility or viability.

Kakouris’ remarks to CNA reinforce that same point. Speaking of the project’s broader context, he said the EIB remains “committed to supporting initiatives that enhance Europe’s energy security and decarbonisation efforts” and that the Bank “closely follows developments in cooperation with the Governments of Greece and Cyprus and the European Commission.”