COSCO Piraeus Pier III Inaugurated

 

The Inauguration of the Expansion of Pier III of COSCO Piraeus Container Terminal(PCT) was held yesterday. Premier Li Keqiang of China sent a congratulatory message, which was read by Mr. Zou Xiaoli, Chinese Ambassador to Greece during the ceremony. Prime Minister Antonis Samaras of Greece attended the event and made congratulatory remarks. Executive Vice President Sun Jiakang of COSCO Group delivered a speech and cut the ribbon together with the Prime Minister and Ambassador.

In his message, Premier Li Keqiang said that China and Greece are enjoying all-round and rapid development of bilateral relations. “Our political mutual trust is growing, and our practical cooperation is yielding new results. Our cooperation on the Piraeus port, in particular, has set a fine example. When I was in Greece in June 2014, I made a point of visiting the port and recognized that such win-win cooperation indeed brings benefits to both nations. I deeply appreciate that Prime Minister Samaras has attached great importance to our bilateral relations and made tremendous efforts in supporting the PCT project. I wish to reiterate that China highly values its relations with Greece and hopes that through joint efforts with Greece, the Piraeus port will be turned into a first class port in the Mediterranean Sea and a vital hub of the region, and on that basis, the building of the China-Europe Land-Sea Express Line will be accelerated. By so doing, we will move China-Greece practical cooperation steadily forward and deliver even greater benefits to our two countries and peoples.”

In his remarks, Prime Minister Samaras highly recognized the rapid growth of PCT in Greece, which he hailed as the most important investment in Greece in last decade. This investment and the Pier III project will create more jobs for Greek people and further improve Greece’s infrastructures. These projects will also consolidate the role of Piraeus as an important European portal along the new Silk Road, and help boost the Greek economy. Prime Minister Samaras also thanked Premier Li Keqiang and COSCO Group for their firm trust on him, and expressed that he is looking forward to COSCO’s continuous growth in Greece.

The inauguration was also attended by relevant officials, company representatives from both countries.