Tag: Greece

On 2 August, authorities at the Greek Port of Thessaloniki seized a 52-kilogram shipment of cocaine coming into the northern Greek city via container. The drugs were hidden in the refrigeration system of a container that was carrying bananas from Latin America. 

Qatargas has delivered the first LNG cargo on a Q-Flex vessel to Greece’s Revithoussa LNG Terminal. This is for the first time that a Q-Flex LNG ship has called at the terminal, since it expanded last year. The cargo was loaded at the Ras Laffan Terminal in Qatar on 3rd July 2019, and it arrived at the Revithoussa Terminal on board the Q-Flex vessel 'Al Gharrafa', on 20 July 2019.

China had a tremendous development in every field in the past decades and has done a wonderful job with the port of Piraues, said recently Andreas Potamianos, president of the Greece-China Association. Potamianos, aged 86, has been at the helm of the Greece-China Association since 1987.

On July 28, a boat caught fire in Halkidiki, Thessaloniki, Greece, with five people onboard. According to local sources, the Serbian-flagged vessel was on fire while sailing, so the captain decided to head towards the coast to put the fire out.

Chatsworth, US-based investment banking firm, is collaborating with Onex Elefsis Shipyards on investment of about USD 400 million in financially-distressed Elefsina Shipyards. The agreement for the partnership was decided on July 9, between the two companies. Now, Chatsworth Securities became the stakeholder of the shipyard and is also the exclusive investment bank for the company's capital needs.

The European Commission decided to refer Greece and Spain to the Court of Justice of the EU for failing to make the EU rules on personal data protection into a law (the Data Protection Law Enforcement Directive, Directive (EU) 2016/680). In April 2016, the Council and the European Parliament agreed the Directive had to be transposed into national law by 6 May 2018.

The tensions in the Strait of Hormuz, following Iran seizing the British-flagged Stena Impero, are in the spotlight as the whole shipping industry waits for any updates on the situation. The Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs published a statement, highlighting the importance of the immediate release of the crewmembers and the continuation of the seized vessel's journey.

The  Maltese-flagged cruise ship 'Marella Discovery' picked up a total of 111 people, including 33 children, from a migrant boat while sailing off Greece's Peloponnese peninsula, in the early morning hours of Sunday, the Hellenic Coastguard informed. 

Greek Piraeus Bank announced it is exploring a potential strategic partnership opportunity with a major Asian Pacific financial conglomerate operating globally, to provide financing solutions to Greek shipping companies. This initiative forms part of its commitment to the shipping community, the Bank said.

The EU plans to curb contracts and funding for Ankara, following Turkey's, what is said to be, illegal drilling for gas and oil off Cyprus, as Reuters reports. During a meeting in Brussels the EU reported that it would introduce stricter measures against Turkey, under the condition that Ankara continues drilling operations.