More than half of Greek shipowners would consider relocating their shipmanagement offices out of Greece, according to a new Ernst & Young (EY) study.
The study, entitled ‘Repositioning Greece as a Global Maritime Centre’, also suggested that a similar model to UK’s maritime clusters and promotional bodies be adopted in Greece.
Highlights: In particular, respondents said tax framework and regulatory environment were among the key criteria they took into account when choosing a preferential maritime centre. Shore personnel, geographic location and access to professional services were also high on the list, followed by access to funding and infrastructure. “The role of London is further strengthened by the predominance of English law in the industry and its strong marine insurance services. All three, however, are being challenged by Singapore and Shanghai, especially after the strengthening of the latter’s stock exchange,” the report states. However, London’s standing as a global maritime business centre is not impervious to threat. The report said implementation of the non-domicile initiative by the UK, as well as Brexit, might force several Greek-owned shipping companies to relocate from London to Piraeus. Fostering close coordination between private-sector initiatives to establish and promote a competitive Greek shipping cluster was one of the report’s top four recommendations. Further, the report noted that although shipping is concentrated in the Attica region around Athens and in Thessaloniki, there is little formal or informal cooperation among the business community. Neither is there a shipping organisation that lobbies formally for policy changes on behalf of the Greek shipping community or that promotes Greece’s offering to the world. “Despite the fact that the Greek cluster relies on a significant number of shipping companies, relevant policy measures are still found wanted,” the report said. “Meanwhile, competition from other clusters that target to attract the Greek shipping companies increases. A most recent example are the consistent efforts of Cyprus to upgrade its very own shipping cluster by adopting specific measures, tailored to specific needs and weaknesses.” Please click herebelow to read EY report