Another 35 vessels were added to the Greek registry since the beginning of the year, with ships belonging to 12 Greek-controlled shipping companies - a welcome development for the all-important as far as Greece's battered economy is concerned.
Another 35 vessels were added to the Greek registry since the beginning of the year, with ships belonging to 12 Greek-controlled shipping companies - a welcome development for the all-important as far as Greece's battered economy is concerned.
Beyond the symbolism, each Greek-flagged vessel employs at least four to six Greek merchant seamen, depending on its size.
The largest bloc of vessels among the 35 belong to the Aggelikousis Group, which listed 13 vessels – nine bulkers, two LNG carriers and two tankers --since the beginning of 2016 on the Greek registry. Other companies that listed vessels on the registry belong to the Martinos, Angelopoulos and Polemis groups, along with the Eletson Corp; three tankers recently purchased by the Onassis Foundation; a new tanker by Euronav, another tanker by the Avin group and a new tanker by Niovis Shipping.
The Alafouzos group registered two new tankers on the Greek registry, while the Diamantidis group registered three, and Alpha B raised the Greek flag on its new Korean-made bulker.
According to the London-based Greek Shipping Co-operation Committee, there were 809 vessels (over 1,000 gt) on the Greek registry by the end of February, 30 fewer in comparison with the previous year. Nevertheless, the addition of the 35 vessels in 2016 is expected to balance the loss.