Paul Gauci takes over port in Marina di Ragusa, planning daily catamaran trips to Malta

A new catamaran link between Malta and Sicily is planned following the takeover of the Porto di Marina di Ragusa by a Maltese businessman, an Italian online tourist and news portal has revealed.

BusinessToday is informed that Paul Gauci, owner of PAMA Shopping Village and co-owner of PAVI Shopping Centre, is leading a small group of investors which has finalised the purchase of the marina in the southeastern tip of Sicily.

Besides launching a daily catamaran link to Malta, Gauci seems intent on developing extensive retail and residential units around the marina, as well as refurbishing the existing ship repairing facilities.

The logistics involved in having a medium-sized catamaran visit the harbour on a regular basis were discussed earlier this year at a meeting called by Ragusa mayor Peppe Cassì.

Sources said that the possibility of a catamaran link between Malta and Marina di Ragusa appears to have gained more impetus following news in early October that Ponte Ferries had suspended its catamaran service between Valletta and Pozzallo, a year after launching the route to rival the long-established Virtu’ Ferries.

The tourist port in Marina di Ragusa was developed after Tecnis, a consortium of Italian companies, was awarded a 60-year lease in 2005. The developed received €30 million in EU funds.

The company went into liquidation in 2016, with a number of its top officials under investigation for fraud and misappropriation.

Now BusinessToday is informed that the Maltese investment group, principally Gauci, has assumed the debt still owed to Italian banks by Tecnis, and is thus placed to take over the title to the lease of the port in Marina di Ragusa, pending judicial approval.

In a video posted online, Maurizio La Micela - editor of online news portal TursimoIbleo, confirmed that the deal with ‘the Maltese investor’ was welcomed in Ragusa, with locals hoping the sale would lead to an increase in tourist numbers.

The marina in Marina di Ragusa is one of the best equipped in Sicily, with 700 berths for yachts of up to 50 metres.

Cassì said the port in Marina di Ragusa was crucial for the region and was a point of reference for many boats visiting southern Sicily.

He welcomed the Maltese investment and said this could only help to further cement the strong ties the southern region of Sicily and Malta already enjoy.

“Malta and Sicily are already linked by daily catamaran trips to Pozzallo,” Cassì said. “I only hope that the Maltese investors involve the local region in the regeneration of the harbour.”

He confirmed that plans were in place for parts of the harbour to be dredged to allow for the berthing of larger vessels.