The Cyprus Union of Shipowners (CUS), is “committed to the further development and growth of the Cyprus flag and to Cyprus attracting more business and investment to the wide range of opportunities that our country offers”, according to Andreas Hadjiyiannis, president of Cyprus Sea Lines and of CUS, who was addressing the Capital Link Invest in Cyprus Forum on March 22nd in New York. Columbia Ship Management managing director Andreas Hadjipetrou said at the conference that the fact that CSM was headquartered in Limassol showed that “Cyprus could be a hub for international shipping businesses to grow”. He estimated that 20% of the global third-party ship management fleet was controlled from Cyprus “employing around 4,500 highly qualified personnel and 55,000 seafarers.”
Hadjipetrou added that “historically the governments have been supportive of the maritime cluster and this has resulted in the innovative tonnage tax system and superb local expertise.”