67% of the port of Iguminitsa was acquired by the Italian Grimaldi Group

On Friday, Italy’s Grimaldi Group, the largest coastal shipper, and the Greek state privatization agency finalized an agreement to transfer a 67% stake in the port of Igoumenitsa to it.

The agreement was signed in the port city of the same name in the far north-west of Greece, which is the westernmost terminus of the Egnatia toll motorway and a hub for ferry ships to Italian ports.

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, at the head of the government delegation, took part in the ceremony, where he noted that “handing over the management of the port of Igoumenitsa to a major shipping giant such as the Grimaldi group means the growth of both the national and local economy. This is an important investment with significant returns for HRADF (privatization agency), more than 84 million euros will flow into the state treasury.”

In subsequent statements from the city of Ioannina, the historical capital of the mountainous province of Epirus, Mitsotakis said that “Greece is delivering positive surprises amid plenty of bad news, embarking on very strong growth and with public finances in good shape.”

PS 84 million for a port that generates a similar amount annually is truly a bargain. Well, just like the sale of all the railways in Greece to an Italian state-owned company. How reminiscent this all is of post-Soviet privatization…

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