Greek Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, attended the Posidonia International Shipping Exhibition at the Athens’ Metropolitan Exhibition Centre on Monday.
During his opening address, Mitsotakis spoke about the historic challenge facing Greek shipping in the future – that of becoming “green.”
The Greek PM stressed that he had addressed a letter to the European Commission President to request that shipping becomes a European priority.
Europe, and particularly its bureaucracy, he said, “has to understand that Greek-owned ships have a significant advantage that will contribute to its strategic autonomy.”
Greek-owned shipping helps maintain the global supply chain, particularly in the EU, he said, while green shipping “will protect our sea and air.”
The transport of natural gas:
During the conference, Mitsotakis also spoke about the transport of natural gas and how Greek shipping can contribute to stability in this sector.
Referring to the Alexandroupolis LNG station, the expansion of Revythoussa facilities, and the development of pipelines and power networks, Mitsotakis said progress has been made on these projects.
“We are significantly increasing the capacity of the Revythousa facilities, while we are also accelerating the development of pipelines that will connect us to the Balkans, but also the development of electricity networks that will connect us with the Middle East and North Africa,” he said on Twitter.
“Our homeland is becoming an energy gateway to all of Europe and certainly a critical hub for the entire southeastern Mediterranean.”
Posidonia will continue until June 10, and organisers said they expected a total of at least 1,929 companies from 88 countries as exhibitors, including 24 national pavilions from Europe, North America and Asia.
