In 2021, Greek ferry companies reported a lower than expected recovery



Last year in Greece ferry companies reported an increase in passengers transported compared to 2020, but it was a volume of traffic that was still down 40% percent from the eventful in 2019. Michalis Sakellis, president of SEEN, the association of the Greek companies operating ro-pax vessels, in his report to the general assembly of the organisation held yesterday, in which he specified that, moreover, the number of cars carried in 2021 by companies in the sector were down 15 -20% compared to 2019, while the number of trucks embarked on ships experienced a less than 5-10% increase in comparison with the 2019. "Even on the Adriatic routes, there has been a significant improvement compared to 2020, but the volumes carried have remained low compared to 2019 and, specifically, with a 35% percent drop in passengers and 28% percent of cars," said Sakellis. while a 10% increase in truck traffic has been recorded. "

"In 2021, the results of passenger traffic were certainly not the expected ones," SEEN president said, expressing concern about factors that undermine the resumption of the companies ' business. of Greek ferries affected by the strong negative impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, starting with energy costs : " the energy crisis that afflicts the world is affecting the passenger transport sector more than any other sector of the economy. We estimate that currently to cover the cost of fuel, we have spent about 40% percent of the net tariffs that we collect, while for only 2021 we believe that our companies have been charged with 130 million euros, " he said. of the 45% increase in the cost of fuel ".

"The situation is manageable, but it is not easy and above all it can only have consequences," Sakellis said. The government must seriously assess the situation and analyse the effects the energy crisis could have on our islands, their inhabitants and their tourism, which accounts for 70% percent of tourism in Greece. "

Referring to the rules for decarbonising shipping, the SEEN president also cited the problem of the renewal of the Greek ferry fleet : "in 2035, it observed-of the 107 ships currently en route on our lines," the company said. ferry, 52 will be more than 40 years old, of which 20 more than 50. On the international market, the availability of young ships suitable for our transport typology is rare, and ships that meet environmental requirements are not available. In addition, it should be emphasized that the construction of new vessels is time-consuming and that the amount of investment is extremely high in relation to the planned overall transport project, which is characterized by a high seasonality. We believe that the multi-annual public service contracts that have been defined can support the construction of a very limited number of ships, which obviously does not solve the problem. "This is a facilitation of the ecological costs of new construction, but also their financing on concessional terms, according to the National Recovery and Resilience Plan," he said.

The renewal of the fleet is also the first of the priorities of the three-year mandate of Spiros Paschalis, CEO of the Attica Group, which yesterday the assembly elected as the new president of SEEN, while Sakellis was given the title of honorary president of the association. Among the primary issues to be addressed during his term in office Paschalis also cited the adaptation of the fleet to new international environmental regulations, the modernisation of the institutional framework for cabinet-level navigation and the improvement of the travel experience in Greek ports.