Transhipment volumes have driven growth in Piraeus Port, which announced the strongest container volumes among the Mediterranean ports in its 2019 annual results.
The COSCO-owned port was the busiest Mediterranean container port and the fourth busiest in Europe behind Rotterdam, Antwerp and Hamburg, marking an annual record in 2019 with 5.65 million TEU.
“Transhipment volumes have mainly driven the boost of the Greek port, while feeder services have also seen a significant growth” OLP (Piraeus Port Authority) spokesperson told Container News.
Apart from the volumes milestone, Piraeus Port Authority (PPA) presented a top performance in financial terms. The turnover of the company amounted to €149.2 million (US$163.7 million), profit before tax reached €47.6 million (US$52.2 million) and the net result totalled €35.4 million (US$38.8 million), which are translated to increases of 12.3%, 12.5% and 27%, respectively.
“2019 was the most successful year in terms of profitability,” CEO of PPA SA, Captain Fu Chengqiu, stated.
Moreover, PPA SA will pay €5.4 million (US$5.9 million) concession fees to the Greek State for the year 2019 compared to €4.8 million (US$5.3 million) in 2018.
The Chinese company has also reported cash and cash equivalent of €106.7 million (US$117 million) and a proposed dividend per share of €0.5388 (US$O.59).
“The successful financial management also brings additional revenue to the Greek State due to increased concession fees, dividends, insurance contributions, etc. and contributes to the welfare of the local communities,” commented Captain Fu.
