Larnaca’s District Local Government Organisation has filed criminal charges against a metal recycling plant in Aradippou following an explosion on Friday that injured three individuals. The facility has been operating without the necessary permits since 2014.
Angelos Hadjicharalambous, President of the Larnaca District Local Government Organisation, announced that he instructed the Enforcement Department to promptly register a criminal case against the plant’s owner for operating an unlicensed operation. “Given that the metal recycling unit based in Aradippou has been operating without a permit since 2014, I gave instructions to the Enforcement Department, and it immediately proceeded to register a criminal case against the owner for the fact that the facility is not licensed,” Hadjicharalambous stated.
Questions have arisen regarding how the Department of Environment issued a licence for metal collection and sorting for recycling, despite the facility lacking essential operating permits. Aradippou Mayor Christodoulos Partou noted that two similar companies operate in close proximity, and pointed out that an explosion occurred at one factory last year; Friday’s incident involved the other facility.
Both owners had purchased a field in 2014, where they placed scrap metal while simultaneously submitting applications for the required operating permits. The Department of Environment began legal procedures in 2019 to suspend operations at the factory through the Attorney General. However, in 2022, the owners’ lawyers requested an extension, which the Environment Department denied, opting instead to proceed with legal action.
A court ruling in 2023 resulted in a €600 fine imposed on the owners. Mayor Partou expressed his concern, stating, “As soon as I became aware that these specific facilities were operating without permits, I sent a letter to Larnaca District Local Government Organisation, notifying them of this fact.” He added that the Aradippou Municipal Council would convene to discuss the issue and determine the necessary actions that the local authority should take.
