The company has spent the last few years jumping though various bureaucratic hurdles in Greece in a bid to start building on the Cavo Sidero peninsula.

While Minoan said it had not had full confirmation, it noted reports in the Greek travel media suggesting the four signatures needed for the presidential decree.

Minoan said: “Whilst the company has not received a formal confirmation of this news, it has received verbal confirmation from sources within the Greek government.”

Christopher Egleton, Minoan chairman, said: "The importance of the presidential decree cannot be overstated. If the rumours and the verbal confirmation are indeed correct, then I am delighted that after such an extended time we now have the signatures of every required member of the government.

"We are grateful for the hard work of various government ministers and our advisers, particularly at this time when Greece is grappling with many major issues."

Shares were up by 35% in afternoon trading on Wednesday February 24.

Although it appears to be good news, we have heard similar things from Minoan in the past and building work has still not started.