Cyprus reservoirs recover after a rainy year, but the risk of water shortages remains

Water reserves in Cyprus’s reservoirs have increased noticeably compared with last year, but the main systems are still close to the minimum safe level. If dry conditions return in 2027–2028, the island could face a serious water shortage.

According to the Water Development Department, the reservoirs are currently 38.9% full, corresponding to 113.1 million cubic metres of water. At the same time, the level during the same period in 2025 was around 16%. Despite the improvement, reserves are only a few percentage points above the department’s established minimum safe level of 35%. A further decline would significantly increase the risk of water shortages in the coming years. Higher rainfall and increased inflows between January and May have improved the situation. Desalination has provided additional support to the system: existing plants have already supplied more than 51 million cubic metres of water.

At the same time, individual water systems remain under serious pressure. Reserves in the Southern Conveyor system stand at 36.1%, or 68.4 million cubic metres, only slightly above the safe level. The Paphos reservoirs are 41.5% full, with total reserves of 29.7 million cubic metres. However, forecasts indicate that the system serving Paphos’s major irrigation project could virtually exhaust its reserves by the end of 2028 due to the continued growth in drinking water consumption.

Experts stress that the overall figure for the island does not present the full picture. Different systems have different capacities, needs and resilience to drought.

The Water Development Department notes that Cyprus periodically experiences a cycle of roughly seven dry years followed by two or three years of temporary recovery. Therefore, a single rainy year is not enough to eliminate the effects of a prolonged period of insufficient rainfall.

Rising drinking water consumption is creating additional pressure. The department is calling for tighter control over water use, reduced network losses and the use of tariff measures to manage demand. At the same time, experts warn that improved reserves compared with the exceptionally dry 2025 do not mean Cyprus can afford unlimited water consumption. Desalination remains a key source of drinking water. By 2025, permanent desalination plants could produce around 85 million cubic metres of water per year — approximately 70% of the national demand, which stands at 121 million cubic metres. Mobile plants commissioned in 2025–2026 have already supplied around 6 million cubic metres out of the total of more than 51 million cubic metres produced through desalination.

Mobile plants commissioned in 2026 are expected to produce an additional 9 million cubic metres annually. This will increase the share of desalinated water in meeting drinking water needs to approximately 76%. However, water consumption is growing by at least 5% per year, gradually reducing the share of demand covered by desalination. The authorities plan to build new permanent and mobile plants in various parts of the island. The programme runs until 2029, but some projects are still at the construction, licensing or administrative stage. Until the programme is completed, water resources will be managed with due regard for the need to conserve water and preserve reserves in case of an emergency.

According to experts, the improved situation in 2026 should be used to strengthen Cyprus’s resilience to prolonged drought and climate change, rather than to increase water consumption.