The record valuation for the Greek port was set at the suggestion of the Grimaldi group, through which it acquired 67% of the Port Authority of Igoumenitsa in a related TAIPED tender. He paid 84.17 million, surpassing the offer of his competitor, the Port Authority of Thessaloniki, thus generating a value of 100% of the business of 125 million. This is an amount that corresponds to a third of the estimate of the Piraeus Port Authority (360 million in AS), which has a twenty-fold turnover, while it is equivalent to 150 times the operating profit of the port of Igoumenitsa, which was formed in 2021 at the level of 863,000 people.

For many, the offer amount is a demonstration of the financial power of the Italian businessman Emmanuel Grimaldi and a message about how he intends to participate in another tender for the Greek port, namely the port organization of Heraklion in Crete, where he also qualified for the second stage. However, those who know the business plans of the Italian group understand the prospects that the shipowner sees in Igoumenitsa.

He paid 84.17 million euros, which is 150 times the operating profit of the port.

There are two reasons why he paid such a high price, according to circles in the Italian group: the first, which Grimaldi himself even mentioned publicly a week ago at a conference in Italy, is the defender. Considering that Igoumenitsa is one of the two main ports (the other being Patras) from which the lines connecting Greece with Italy can be reached, and that the port dues it pays correspond to approximately 60% of the turnover, the Port Authority of Igoumenitsa sought to prevent the acquisition of control from third parties. Yes, the concession agreement defines very specific conditions – and inflation in particular – under which port charges can be increased, but it is clear that ownership of the port gives it more security and much less risk, the sources in the group explain. The second reason why the company offered such a high price is its plans for the future. In particular, the Grimaldi group wants, on the one hand, to improve the infrastructure of the port of Igoumenitsa, so that the services offered to its main customers, which are transport and trucking companies, are modernized, and, on the other hand, to develop a cargo center. which, using road links to Egnatia, will attract even more trucks bound for Europe, starting not only from Greece, but also from the Balkan countries and Turkey. “We are determined to develop the port and make it a gateway for trade from the Balkans and Greece to Central and Western Europe,” senior sources in the Italian group, who were asked about it, told Kathimerini. In other words, the focus is on Egnatia Odos, which is also being privatized during this period and expanding vertically, and which is estimated to be able to attract much more commercial activity to Italy.

There are also plans to electrify the ships in the port so that they do not pollute the environment during their stay there. In addition, the port organization of Igoumenitsa has the prospect of development through regional activities, including the three marinas it controls. We remind you that the Organization has the right to the exclusive use and management of the territory, buildings and facilities of four ports, namely the port of Igoumenitsa, the Sayadas Fishing Reserve, the Plataria Fishing Reserve and the Syvota Yachting Reserve, located in the north-west of Greece, in the region of Epirus, on the basis of a concession agreements with the Greek state. The concession agreement is concluded for 60 years from the date of its signing and expires on February 3, 2062.

With Greece being a popular yachting destination and attracting more and more yachtsmen from abroad sailing its waters, as well as the significant lack of berthing infrastructure, these three marinas have the potential to become important profit centers for the company. To date, the main activities of the Organization relate to the maintenance and provision of docking services for ferries and Ro-Ro ships (cars and other vehicles) of both domestic and international coastal lines. In addition, it provides support services to ships (water supply, electricity, communications, etc.) and uses the land and construction infrastructure of the port of Igoumenitsa.

A fleet of 130 ships and an international network of 20 ports

In the latest fiscal year 2021, the Grimaldi Group recorded a turnover of €3.46 billion, earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) reached €947 million compared to €659 million in 2020, and equity increased up to 4.45 billion euros. euro, as announced earlier this year. Although coastal shipping and offshore commercial shipping are its core business, the group is no stranger to port management: it already controls, with full or partial concessions, more than 20 ports worldwide, with a total land area and storage area exceeding 6 million square meters. meters. This network of port terminals is considered one of the strong competitive advantages of the group, which is currently expanding. The Group operates its own regional terminals in major European ports such as Antwerp (Belgium), Civitavecchia (Italy), Salerno (Italy), Valencia and Barcelona (Spain). It also controls 100% of the port of Vallhamn, which is the first fully privatized Swedish port, and the Unikai Lagerei und Speditionsgesellschaft terminal in Hamburg (Germany) is also owned by Grimaldi in partnership with Hamburg Harbor and the state-owned Logistic AG. Its other terminals are located in Northern Europe, the Southern Mediterranean as well as West Africa. As far as the Baltic region is concerned, Finnlines’ subsidiary, through Finnsteve, has terminals in the Finnish ports of Helsinki and Turku. In the port of Lagos, Nigeria, the group built a multi-purpose ferry terminal operated by PTML, also under its control. Most of these terminals are real logistics platforms equipped with equipment. Some of them offer modern multi-modal services and are directly linked to the European road, rail and inland waterway network. At this point, it is worth noting that the group operates not only on passenger ferry lines such as Minoan Lines, but also on purely ferry operations. Vessels that transport exclusively used and mostly new vehicles are one of the largest groups in this sector worldwide. In addition, its fleet of 130 vessels also includes general cargo and container ships.

Competitions in Volos and Heraklion and new balances in shipping

The first indication that the ports of Piraeus and Thessaloniki will experience stronger competition from regional ports such as Igoumenitsa, Patra and Volos in the coming years, and possibly lose some of the trade shares they have today, came with the acquisition of the port . Igoumenitsa by the Grimaldi group. The development of this port may lead to the movement of cargo from Thessaloniki to Igoumenitsa – one of the reasons why the Thessaloniki Port Authority was involved in the tender for the acquisition of most of the share capital to the end. This is explained by sources in the port industry, adding that the second challenge for the port organization of Thessaloniki will be the transfer of the port to Volos. That is why, according to their estimates, THA will be one of the contenders for the competition announced this week by TAIPED. At the same time, the prospect of a concession by the Patras Port Authority in the coming years will give another outlet to Europe for cargo currently using Piraeus, the same sources explain. “The ability of large private groups to attract cargo through aggressive commercial policies is expected to tip the balance,” they say. In addition, the Heraklion Port Authority concession in Crete, which is in its final stages (with a binding financial offer expected in the first quarter of 2023 for 67% of its share capital), could generate new data also in the passenger market and, in especially on cruises. The infrastructure upgrades at the large port of Crete and the development of a new airport next to it can be a magnet for major cruise lines to start and end their itineraries there, especially if they have better commercial offers than those offered, for example, by the Piraeus Port Authority. At the same time, ports of strategic importance, such as Kavala and especially Alexandroupolis, which fall under US interest for geostrategic reasons, are expected to seek their financial restructuring to at least cover their ever-increasing operating costs. costs, thus gaining a share of the handling of commercial cargo passing through the country. In any case, however, the Greek governments over time, and especially in the last decade, when the port privatization program is “working”, have introduced two main types of control in all privatized or privatized ports: on the one hand, for their concession (on a certain period of time) requires mandatory investments in infrastructure in order to maximize economic benefits for the real economy and ensure the quality of investors. On the other hand, they have included in all concession contracts a clause whereby they may, for reasons of national interest and public safety, prohibit the approach of any ship at their discretion. In most of these ports, they hold and will hold a minority stake, and have entered into and are entering into shareholder agreements that limit the ability of investors to unilaterally make important business decisions.