The Greek shipping community is confident that Greece can be a maritime center in near term, said a research report. A study -‘repositioning Greece as a global maritime capital' - conducted by  Ernest & Young in cooperation with Aegean University professor Thanos Pallis said that Greece, especially the port of Piraeus, is viewed as future competitors of Asia’s aggressive shipping hubs in the coming decade. The study gauging the views and forecasts of 779 Greek shipping executives revealed that the most attractive and comprehensive framework among  shipping hubs or “clusters” today is Piraeus…

South Korea’s STX Offshore & Shipbuilding won contracts to build six tankers from Greece and local shippers, reports Korea JoongAng Daily. STX announced that Greek shipper OceanGold Tankers placed an order for four medium-range tankers of 50,000 DWT capacity. Two were order on an option contract, which gives the buyer a right to pay for the ship at a pre-determined price in case ship prices rise. The deal was worth $140 million in total. According to STX,  the ships will be constructed in its Jinhae shipyard in Changwon, South Gyeongsan, and delivered by the first quarter of 2019.

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.

Cyprus-based American Hellenic Hull Insurance (AHHI) surpassed key targets during its first year of operation: 1,900 insured vessels, written premium income exceeded $10 million and covered 35 million GT on 100% basis, said a press statement. During its latest Board meeting in June 2017, American Hellenic Hull Insurance Company appointed two new Directors, Angelos Kostakos of Oceanstar Management Inc. and . Panagiotis Christodoulatos of Ikaros Shipping & Brokerage Kostakos is Legal, Insurance and Claims Director of Oceanstar Management Inc.

Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. won $400 million in orders from Greece to build five containerships and four bulk carriers. Hyundai Heavy said the 5,500 TEU containerships will be delivered to Greece's Costamare Shipping Co. between late 2000 and the first half of 2001. The bulk carriers, all 75,000-gt class, are scheduled for delivery to Arcadia Shipmanagement Co. of Greece by the end of 2001. Hyundai Heavy said with the orders from Greece its shipbuilding orders this year rose to $2.5 billion and its backlog orders stands at $6 billion.

Aegean Marine Petroleum Network Inc. (NYSE:ANW) has established operations in Patras, Greece, expanding the company's presence in the Mediterranean. Patras, located on the western coast of Greece, serves as a strategic commercial hub connecting Greece and the Balkans with Italy and the rest of Western Europe. The port, ranking second in Greece in terms of size, caters to all segments of shipping and has a particular emphasis on the international ferry business. Aegean has been serving the Patras market on a limited basis since the second quarter of 2008 from its base in Piraeus. The company plans to assign four of its Piraeus' stationed double-hull bunkering tankers to this market.

Inchcape Shipping Services (ISS) advised of 48 hour strike action in Greece by the Seamen’s Union from 0600 on Thursday 31 August until 0600 on Saturday 2 February 2013. ISS Greece has confirmed that the strike disruption means that there will be no assistance by tug boat crews with berthing and sailing movements for vessels calling at the ports of Piraeus, Aspropyrgos, Eleusis and Lavrion and pilots have also confirmed they will be joining the strike from 12.00 until 16.00 on 31st January. Vessel movements at Thessaloniki will not be affected as the local towage company will not be joining the strike. ISS Greece will continue to monitor developments on behalf of ship owners and operators and will keep customers updated.

Inchcape Shipping Services (ISS), a  maritime services provider, is advising of 48 hour strike action in Greece by the Seamen’s Union from 0600 on Thursday 31 January until 0600 on Saturday 2 February 2013. ISS Greece has confirmed that the strike disruption means that there will be no assistance by tug boat crews with berthing and sailing movements for vessels calling at the ports of Piraeus, Aspropyrgos, Eleusis and Lavrion and pilots have also confirmed they will be joining the strike from 12.00 until 16.00 on 31st January. Vessel movements at Thessaloniki will not be affected as the local towage company will not be joining the strike. ISS Greece will continue to monitor developments on behalf of ship owners and operators and will keep customers updated.

China is closely monitoring the policies of the new Greek government after Athens said this week it will stop the sale of a majority stake in Greece's biggest port, China's trade ministry said on Thursday. The Greek government last year had shortlisted China's Cosco Group as a potential buyer of a 67 percent stake in Piraeus Port Authority. But Greece stopped the sale this week, saying it would be put on hold as newly elected Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras halted privatisation plans agreed under Greece's bailout deal. "We are paying a great deal of attention," Shen Danyang, the spokesman for China's Ministry of Commerce, said when asked about the suspended deal.

Greece is planning to cut tax rates for oil and gas companies as it wants to attract them to help exploit its untapped offshore hydrocarbon resources, its energy minister said on Tuesday. Under the plan, oil and gas explorers will pay 25 percent tax, down from 40 percent currently, and 5 percent of the tax will go to local communities. "We have done this in order to incentivize our investors to invest in the future of Greece," Ioannis Maniatis, Greece's Energy Minister, said at a conference in London. He did not say when the new tax rates would come into effect.

Greece will conclude the evaluation of deep-sea oil and gas exploration bids in the coming weeks and will name the preferred bidders soon after, its energy minister said on Friday, as the country seeks to tap into its limited oil reserves. Plunging crude oil prices have cut spending on oil projects around the world but cash-strapped Greece is pushing ahead with investment in the industry in a bid to reduce dependence on oil imports and boost public finances. "We are evaluating three bids made by oil companies whose financial strength, experience and infrastructure ensure they are in a position to successfully perform gas and oil exploration and production," Energy Minister Panos Skourletis said.

Greece’s deal with Chinese shipping giant COSCO is “helping the country stand on its feet,” Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said. “We are sending a strong message to the international markets that Greece is decisively entering a new phase,” Tsipras said. According to a report in Xinhua, China and Greece have great hopes for Piraeus port, as attested to by the meeting of Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and his Greek counterpart Alexis Tsipras on Monday. Li met with Tsipras in Beijing on Monday afternoon, with much of their meeting focused on Piraeus.

According to sources, Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co said it has won 730m in orders from firms in Belgium and Greece. The shipbuilder said it has secured an order from Exmar Marine NV of Belgium for two LNG regasification vessels and a contract from Gulf Marine Management SA of Greece to build two very large gas carriers. It did not disclose details of each contract. The deals take its order book to 5.22 bln usd or 25 ships, including nine liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers.

A busy Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC 71) is now under way at  International Maritime Organization (IMO) Headquarters in London (3-7 July). A key item on the agenda is the implementation of the Ballast Water Management (BWM) Convention, which will enter into force on 8 September 2017. The Committee will consider draft amendments to the BWM Convention which will determine the implementation schedule for installations of ballast water management systems. Following ratification by Greece last week (on 26 June)…

M/V Acorus vessel was detained in Port of Asprogirpos (Elefsis) - Greece on 6 July 2017. This is the third detention in the Paris MoU region within the last 36 months. The ship flies the flag of Moldova Republic, which is black on the current Paris MoU WGB list. "Therefore under the provisions of section 4 of the Paris MoU, Article 16 of EU Council Directive 2009/16/EC, the ship will be refused further access to any port and anchorage in the Paris MOU region, except a port and anchorage of the ship’s flag State," said a release from  Paris MoU.

Athens, Greece, May 4, 2011 - Danaos Corporation (NYSE: DAC), a leading international owner of containerships, announced that on May 4, 2011, it took delivery of one more newly built containership, the Hanjin Greece, expanding its operational fleet to a total of 55 containerships aggregating 257,029 TEU. The Hanjin Greece, built at Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries Co. Ltd. has a carrying capacity of 10,100 TEU, is 349 meters long, 45.6 meters wide and has a speed of 25.50 knots. The Hanjin Greece has commenced its 12-year time charter at a fixed charter rate immediately upon delivery.

Inchcape Shipping Services (ISS) appointed by Petroleum Geo-Services (PGS) to support a key marine seismic survey project in Greece. Under the three month research project, ISS Greece will provide marine services to the survey vessel ‘Nordic Explorer’ and two smaller support vessels as they work along the western Greek coast from Patras Port. The national project has been commissioned by the Greek government to try and seek out important new reserves of natural gas. George Andreakos (ISS Greece and Mednet Operations Manager) is leading the operational team to assist the project in close co-operation with the ISS Offshore Solutions team, headed by Dan Whysall. This is the third contract awarded by PGS to ISS Greece and follows previous surveys in Cyprus.

Euro zone countries have approved the disbursement of a 1 billion euro tranche of aid to Greece after it passed a series of reforms to qualify for the money, the Greek government said on Wednesday. The decision came after lawmakers passed a bill last week to merge public sector pension funds and allow more construction and business activity along Greece's long Mediterranean coastline, plans for which sparked outrage in the country. The bill also included a proposal to supervise the funding of political parties. The money - whose release was approved by the Euro Working Group - will help Greece meet bond payments later this month and precedes a major review of Athens' progress by the European Union and International Monetary Fund in September.

Greece's shipping sector faces paying a higher tonnage tax, and a phase-out of the special tax allowances it has enjoyed, under the latest proposals presented by the country's creditors, according to documents seen by Reuters. Together with tourism, the shipping sector is a vital generator of income for Greece. According to an official document indicating steps Greece must take, its lenders say the country must "increase the rate of the tonnage tax and phase out special tax treatments of the shipping industry". A separate document showed Greece had proposed to "increase tonnage tax and implement an effective taxation framework for commercial shipping". (Reporting by Jonathan Saul, Matthias Sobolewski, George Georgiopoulos and Michele Kambas)

Oil and shipping conglomerate A.P. Moller-Maersk said on Tuesday it was experiencing no problems funding operations in Greece or getting paid by Greek customers despite the imposition of capital controls by Athens. Maersk Line, the world's largest container shipping company,  has offices in Greece and vessels passing though its ports. Maersk's terminal operator unit, APM Terminals, was invited to bid for Greece's biggest port, Piraeus Port. "We are not facing issues funding local operations.

A sailboat carrying migrants sank in in the Aegean sea between Turkey and Greece on Tuesday and at least 17 people were missing, Greek authorities said. Greece's maritime ministry said Greek and Turkish rescue efforts had saved 16 of the between 33 and 37 migrants believed to be on board when the boat went down between the Greek islands of Farmakonisi and Agathonisi. Their nationalities were not known. "The operation is ongoing," said a spokeswoman for Greece's maritime ministry. More than 135,000 refugees and migrants have arrived in Europe by sea in the first half of this year, many of them fleeing war, repression and poverty in Africa and the Middle East. Most are Syrians.

Louis announced that ferry services to Greece have resumed for the summer season. The cruise ship Princessa Marissa would be offering ferry services to Piraeus and Rhodes for the second year in a row following a hiatus of around five years. Ferry services between Cyprus and Greece were suspended after violence flared in Israel during the second intifada. The service used to run from Piraeus to Limassol before ending in Haifa, and most of the demand for ferry services was from Israelis wanting to travel to Greece or take their cars to Europe. However, when Israelis stopped traveling, demand from Cyprus was not enough to keep the services running. Last year was the first time the Princessa Marissa resumed schedule under a pilot scheme that was to run until September.

Pantazopoulos as General Manager of its Piraeus office. shipping and Greece. of leading ship management company Avin International S.A. in Athens. posts in the maritime sector in Greece and the United States. most vibrant and innovative truly maritime nation in the world.