By Anastasia Vamvaka
The gradual increase in passenger traffic and transport work is shown by XRTC’s new research on Greek shipping, presenting the open challenges that the industry has to manage in order to move on a healthy trajectory.
The demand for ferry services followed a steady upward trend in the four years 2016-2019, with the result that ferry passenger traffic in 2019 reached 19 million, the largest number ever recorded. However, the coronavirus pandemic has disrupted the operation and outlook of the industry, resulting in a large decline in passenger and vehicle traffic in 2020 and a gradual improvement in 2021.
The increase in passenger and vehicle traffic in 2021 compared to 2020 in passengers reached 44% while in terms of vehicles as a whole (cars and trucks) it reached 37%. It is characteristic that on the Piraeus-Crete Dodecanese line the increase reached 345% as well as on the Piraeus-Eastern Cyclades line at 92%.
It is estimated that the increase in the traffic of 2021 and the indications that exist in the current period give optimistic and hopeful messages for the traffic of the current year.
According to the study by XRTC Business Consultants Ltd., which is active in Shipping Finance and providing consulting services to shipping companies “the market as such leads to mandatory development which offers great potential and opportunities for those who want to execute business plans within the Greece and Europe.
The plans for the development of green shipping or better clean shipping without emissions, the necessary investments in critical sectors that affect the smooth operation of the supply chain such as ports, urban railways, parking and cargo parks, are important points that must be be properly attended to by all parties involved in order to restart a new cycle of investment in the area and I would say secure support from the state of business plans either with legislative interventions or even with financial aids, as this is allowed by European regulations”.
Among the challenges of the time, the effects of the pandemic and the catastrophic drop in transport project demand in 2020 and 2021, the enormous problems presented in the energy sector by sending fuel costs skyrocketing to particularly high prices, as well as the hardship of new investors, certainly stand out. schemes and financial institutions to enter the industry in the last decade with very few exceptions.
Fuel
The new data for the shipping industry is extremely worrying. In particular, after an increase of 32.4% in the average price of marine fuel in 2021 in relation to the year 2020, the average price of fuel in February of this year increased further by 28% in relation to December 2021. The trend for further price increases was maintained in the first weeks of March 2022.
The price of low-sulphur fuel is still hovering above €1,000 per ton, when in the same period in 2021 it hovered around €400.
Fuel costs in normal times made up 30-35% of ships’ operating costs on average. With fuel price increases starting in the fourth quarter of 2021 and throughout 2022 more than double the same period last year, fuel costs have soared to 60-70% of ships’ operating costs.
Private shipping companies have taken measures to mitigate and absorb this additional cost such as reducing ship speeds, reducing or merging some routes and limiting other operating costs. However, all these measures are not able to absorb the economic shocks. At the same time, the war situation in Ukraine and inflationary trends are forcing would-be tourists to revise or postpone their summer vacations.
Ticket price increases were a one-way street for the ferry companies, making island destinations “expensive” for the average Greek. Compared to the previous year, ferry tickets to the Greek islands are up to 35% more expensive.
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Panellenic Lines: After Panellenic Private Aviation, in the field of private VIP flights, the Karatzis group enters the cruise business, with the prospect of expanding to coastal shipping, with Panellenic Lines, in which the Time4 Vacation company also participates, the interests of Mr. Dimitris Haritidis . The new company invested €5 million with the purchase from Spain of a ship with a capacity of 750 passengers and 180 cars, which in July will start daily cruises on the Heraklion – Santorini route, which is of great tourist interest.
Hellenic Seaplanes – Seaplanes of Greece SA: Seaplanes are an unprecedented means of transportation for Greece. The waterways in Volos, Skopelos, Alonissos and Skyros were finally licensed, while in Skiathos they will go to the airport at a higher cost. Apart from the Sporades, the company will also serve the Ionian Islands, as well as the Cyclades with approaches to leeward areas such as Kalafatis in Mykonos. The seaplanes in the Sporades will be either the 10-seater Cessna Caravan, or the 19-seater Canadian-made Twin Otter, but clearly everything will also depend on the travelers’ interest.
Scandro Holding: After 21 years, the first route of the Cyprus-Greece sea passenger connection was carried out by the ship Daleela of the Scandro Holding company. The line is subsidized by the state and the amount of the subsidy amounts to €5.5 million per year for 22 round-trip routes, or 66 routes over three years, which is the duration of the contract, with the possibility of extension for another 3 years, depending on the increase in passengers.
According to the terms of the tender, the contractor will be able to start running the routes between April-May and September-October, which is the period when the highest demand from passengers is expected.
Source: Capital
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