Hardened up! China warns the U.S.: Piraeus Port will not be sold.
Recently, a piece of news spread in the international shipping circle: China clearly informed the U.S. that the Piraeus Port will not be sold, and no third party—especially U.S. capital—will be allowed to interfere. It seems that U.S. tycoons are jealous of the thriving Piraeus Port operated by China.
Piraeus Port was once one of the oldest ports in Europe, but around the time of the 2008 financial crisis, it had fallen into a mess. At that time, the port's annual container throughput was less than 1 million TEU, with aging equipment and low efficiency, and it had been losing money for years, becoming a fiscal burden for the Greek government.
In 2009, COSCO Group won the operating rights of the second and third docks of the port with a 35-year concession right, with an initial investment of about 300 million euros. By 2016, COSCO further acquired 51% of the shares of the Piraeus Port Authority, becoming the controlling shareholder.
Since then, the changes have been remarkable. According to official data from the Piraeus Port Authority, the port's container throughput reached a stable number one in the Mediterranean and fourth in Europe in 2023, behind Rotterdam, Antwerp, and Hamburg. The port directly created over 3,000 jobs, and indirectly brought nearly 10,000 jobs in the upstream and downstream industries. Greeks were very happy.
More importantly, its operational efficiency has risen to the forefront of Europe—the average time ships spend in the port is now less than 8 hours, far below the average of other major southern European ports. In early 2024, the U.S. immediately took an interest in the Piraeus Port.
It is said that U.S. officials repeatedly pressured Greece in closed-door meetings, implying that "strategic assets should not be controlled long-term by non-NATO countries." Some media reports also indicated that the U.S. had privately contacted several private equity funds, trying to jointly push for a restructuring of the Piraeus Port's equity with some Greek political and business figures.
But reality was a slap in the face. After weighing the options, Greece not only did not respond to the U.S. lobbying, but also signed a new cooperation agreement with COSCO in July 2024, extending the cooperation period until 2052, and planning to jointly invest 1.2 billion euros to expand the fourth dock. Greeks understand that if the U.S. comes, it can only mess up their own port, and the most affected will be themselves. Now, the U.S. is hoping that China will actively sell, which is just a dream.
Original article: www.toutiao.com/article/1849749814257676/
Statement: This article represents the personal views of the author.