Kyriakides and Pierides Overseas Ltd (K&P) can trace its origins as far back as 1913 to the Nicosia Electric Company (NEC), the first electricity generation company in Nicosia. In that year the far- sighted entrepreneur George Th. Pierides, having realized the importance of electricity power, bought his first shares in the company, becoming in 1923, its main shareholder and managing director.
The Nicosia Electric Company was based until its nationalisation in 1953, in the building now housing the Nicosia Municipal Arts Centre which is still known as the Old Power House Building – Palia Elektriki.
In 1918, following the nationalisation of all the private electricity generating companies, Theodoros G. Pierides the son of George established the trading house of G. Th. Pierides & Son Ltd (GThP), which at the time, was one of the largest enterprises in Cyprus with well over 200 staff. George Pierides remained as Chairman of the new company whilst Emilios Kyriakides was appointed to the Board.
The Old Power House now a House for the Arts The Old Power House building Generator Hall, where the steam generators were installed
GThP was a multi trading company; however, as its roots were in electricity, the company was quick to establish both an electrical and mechanical contracting division as well as a division dealing with the supply of cables, lighting fittings and electrical materials.
Mr. N. Christou, M.P.B.W. Nicosia
Mr. Theodoros Pierides, Managing director of G. Th. Pierides & Son ltd.,
Mr. C. Stylianides, electrical foreman, of G. Th. Pierides & Son ltd.,
Mr. Ns. Shuer, Secretary of Cyprus Aeroclub.
Mr. Emilios Kyriakides, Director of G. Th. Pierides & Son ltd.,
Mr. G. Theophylactou, Senior office of Air Traffic Control.
The tragic events of 1974 dealt a heavy blow to the company; showrooms, depos and storing facilities were lost within the space of a month. With the survival of the company at stake, the directors decided to split the operations of the company with the purely commercial activities remaining under GThP and mechanical and electrical contracting established under a new unit with Emilios Kyriakides as its managing director.
One of the main aims of the new unit was to bid for contracts in the booming market of the Gulf countries. To strengthen the company, Kyriakos Evgeniou, an electrical engineer by training with experience in the Gulf, was invited to join the Board. Thus, in 1976 the company Evgeniou and Pierides Overseas Ltd was established with Emilios Kyriakides as the managing director.
In 1981, the company took over all the outstanding electrical and mechanical contracting business as well as the professional and technical staff of GThP. In November 1995, following the withdrawal of the other two partners, the company’s ownership passed to the Kyriakides family. The company was renamed Kyriakides and Pierides Overseas Ltd, honouring the origin as well as the strong professional and personal links with the Pierides family.
Moving with the times and recognizing the increasing complexity in the operating environment, in 1997 the directors began the process of preparing the company with a view to obtain an ISO certification for its operational and health and safety systems.
This was expected to be a multi-year project as systems, processes and staff practices needed to comply to a new format and was expected to affect the entirety of operations.
Another important milestone in the development of the company was the decision in 2004 to pursue a strategy of forming joint ventures with other major companies in the electrical, mechanical and construction sectors to create a unified cost base, achieve economies of scale, share project risks and pool under one roof the experienced technical and professional staff of the participating companies.
The subsequent agreements and more importantly, the successful operation of the J/Vs over an extended period of time is credited to a large degree on the business skills of Emilios Kyriakides and the respect and prestige that K&P came to command in the sector. It was by all measures the crowning achievement of Emilios Kyriakides in a career spanning over six decades.
By 2015 Emilios Kyriakides was ready to retire; his daughter Maria Kyriakidou, a trained electrical engineer and business graduate took over as managing director continuing in the path set forty years before. One of the first tasks of the new management was to complete and obtain, in 2016, the ISO9001:2015 for its operations and OHSAS:18001:2007 for its health and safety system – further details are provided in the relevant section.
