Despite a call to professionals to meet the mass requests from communities whose water sources have dried up, only two expressed interest. Of these, when one was assigned to a drilling project in Paphos, they abandoned the work after two weeks.
The Geological Survey Department remains without the necessary reinforcement, so in cases of mass requests for drilling in communities, as happened last summer due to the water crisis, it cannot respond quickly. Although since last spring it has invited private owners of drilling machines to join a special register valid for five years, so that in periods of increased demand they could assist the work of the three machines currently operated by the Department through a bidding process, interest remains disappointingly low. Specifically, only two private contractors have expressed interest so far, and one of them abandoned the Paphos drilling project after two weeks.
According to the Department, during the summer it was necessary to issue calls for five drilling projects in the Paphos district to reduce the workload of the Department's crews so they could focus on the Nicosia and Limassol districts. However, due to the very low interest from private contractors, the projects fell behind schedule. In the end, although delayed, the requests were fulfilled. These requests concerned drilling required for communities, mostly remote ones, which are not connected to the central water projects of the Water Development Department or the Water Boards and were seeing their existing wells run dry.
The option for private owners of drilling machines to register in the special list continues to exist so that if similar increased needs arise in 2026, the Geological Survey Department can try to attract interested private contractors.
The Geological Survey Department currently operates three drilling machines with crews. However, in times of water crises more machines are needed, which is why the Department turns to the private sector.
The Reasons
There are several reasons why private drilling professionals are not particularly interested in state drilling projects. One is the high demand in the private sector due to the ongoing drought. At the same time, the state imposes specific and demanding requirements for water supply drilling, which necessitates expensive equipment. In the private sector, if a drilling project is not completed, the machine owner is still paid and does not answer to anyone. This is not the case with contracts with the state.
Crews, Preventive Drilling and Rescheduling
The Department considers this number adequate. However, in periods of water crises and increased needs, more crews are required, which is why the Department now seeks assistance from the private sector.
Another option is for Department crews to carry out preventive drilling in periods without crisis so that these wells are either connected to the central system or can serve communities during crises. This was done to a significant degree in previous years, which meant that last summer several reserve wells of the Water Development Department were activated. This approach strengthened not only isolated communities but also government water projects.
Currently, the Department is trying to meet new community requests for wells after discovering their sources have dried up. The Water Development Department also plans to immediately activate two old preventive wells to support existing needs.
Due to the 2025 water crisis, the Department had to reschedule and reassign personnel. All activities unrelated to water supply drilling, such as geotechnical work and research, were paused, and staff were reassigned to drilling rigs. Meanwhile, approval has been given for four new hires for the Department’s drilling sector.