Greece is emerging as a top contender among the world’s largest shipping centers, with the area of Athens and Piraeus, where the country’s largest port is located, ranking seventh globally in 2024.
According to the 2024 Xinhua -Baltic International Shipping Center Development (ISCDI) annual report, Athens and Piraeus moved up one spot compared to 2023. According to Naftemboriki daily, this is because Greece continues to play a significant role in the global shipping sector, with more than 1,000 shipping agencies based either in Athens or the wider Attica region.
Singapore, which has consistently held the top spot for more than ten years, is a leading power in both the port and the shipbuilding sectors.
Greece keeps strengthening its place as a global shipping center
The wider Athens and Piraeus area is already one of the largest ship management centers in the world. According to Naftemboriki, there are about 600 shipping companies in the area, managing more than 5,500 commercial vessels. Many foreign groups, from large charterers and law firms to third-party management ship brokers, have been consistently opting to set a base in Greece, turning the Athens and Piraeus region into a global hub for the shipping industry.
Norden, one of the largest charterers, has recently announced it will be opening an office in Athens.
“This move marks another milestone in our continued growth, serving customers around the world,” the Scandinavian shipping giant that manages 542 ships, said in a brief statement on its LinkedIn page.
Over the last years, several other major shipping companies have opened up offices in Greece. To name a few, Japanese NYK has already operating in the country for the past two years, Oldendorff, one of the world’s largest dry bulk shipping companies has established a presence in Greece and Tragifoura, a major global trader and charterer in the world also has an office in the country.
According to shipping industry executives who spoke to Naftemboriki, the institutional framework that has become friendlier in recent years, along with the large companies’ desire to establish direct contact with their main customers, the Greek shipowners are the main reasons pushing large foreign shipping companies to establish a presence in Greece.
More expansion on the way for the port of Piraeus through a collaboration with India
Greece and India have been working to enhance cooperation in shipping, with the Port of Piraeus potentially serving as a central hub for India’s exports to Europe.
This was discussed during a meeting between Sarbananda Sonowal, the union minister for ports, shipping and inland waterways of India, and Christos Stylianides, the minister of maritime affairs of Greece, in New Delhi in November.
Stylianides noted significant interest from Indian exporters in accessing European markets, with officials at the meeting highlighting Greece’s potential in playing a pivotal role through the Piraeus transshipment complex. The strategically positioned Piraeus Port can serve as a gateway to the European Union.
Greece is also hoping to invite Indian investments into the country’s expanding ports sector, he maintained.
“Greece is a leader in world shipping,” the Indian minister noted. “We discussed the India -Middle East – Europe (IMEC) corridor. [This would] make operational the route from India to the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and through the Mediterranean Sea to Greece. We will do all that is needed,” he stressed according to India’s news agency ANI News.
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