The Greek Development Ministry has confirmed a provisional agreement recently signed between Cosco and Hewlett-Packard (HP) for the use of Dock II in Piraeus, which appears to be a very promising deal that bodes well for other investments, too.
The American IT firm HP has chosen Piraeus as the site for its central distribution center for products destined for Central Europe, the Middle East, North Africa, the Mediterranean region and the former Soviet republics, the ministry stated as daily Kathimerini reports.
HP products will be distributed by sea from the terminal that Cosco controls in Piraeus and by rail via state railway service operator TRAINOSE. According to the ministry’s announcement, HP’s transport and shipping activity will add up to a total of $50 billion, the bulk of which will now be taken to Piraeus.
Sources add that the high cost of fuel, which has led to a reduction in the speed of ships, has rendered the port of Rotterdam, where the company currently conducts its distribution from, particularly expensive. Kathimerini noted that HP will therefore cut costs and save time this way: “From Piraeus to Rotterdam, the trip used to last six days, but at current speeds due to the cost of fuel it lasts 11. Therefore Piraeus is the most economical and beneficial choice,” the company said.
During a meeting on Nov. 14 between Prime Minister Antonis Samaras and the Ministers of Development, Costis Hatzidakis, and Merchant Marine, Costas Mousouroulis, as well as the President of TRAINOSE, Thanassis Ziliaskopoulos, officials from HP and PCT, the Cosco subsidiary that controls Dock II, reportedly asked for guarantees for the completion of a railway connection between the dock in Piraeus and the port of Ikonio, a few kilometers away from Piraeus’s main port.
Sources say that the port’s connection by rail with the main network of the Hellenic Railways Organization (OSE), which should have been ready this month, will be completed by the end of the year. Market professionals note that the level of services offered and the productivity at Dock II, managed by PCT, have improved considerably and are now up to international standards.
It is estimated that once the final agreement is signed, the local cargo handled in Piraeus could soar by up to 50%, while TRAINOSE also stands to reap major benefits as it will carry a considerable share of that load to other European countries.
The government’s aim is to transform Greece into a transit center for the broader region through which cargo to and from the Middle East will pass. It is hoping that other companies will also follow HP’s example and choose Piraeus as a key trafficking point. “Our country can make it, when its production engine is dynamically modernized, as this significant decision taken by the three partners shows,” Samaras stated after the meeting.
(Source: ANSA)
See all the latest news from Greece and the world at Greekreporter.com. Contact our newsroom to report an update or send your story, photos and videos. Follow GR on Google News and subscribe here to our daily email!
