Follow Greek Investment Immigration and Greek Economic Trends: According to statistics from Athens XRTC Business Consultant, as of the end of September, Greek shipowners have ordered a total of 188 vessels from Chinese shipyards, while the number ordered from South Korean shipyards is 217. South Korean shipyards still receive more new ship orders from Greece than China, but the gap between China and South Korea has significantly narrowed compared to a few years ago. The main reasons for this include the price advantage of Chinese shipyards and the leap in shipbuilding technology, especially as Chinese state-owned banks continue to provide favorable ship financing services.
Currently, ship financing provided by European banks has significantly decreased. In this context, Chinese state-owned banks have begun to offer low-interest ship financing to Greek shipowners. According to Theodore E. Veniamis, president of the Greek Shipowners Association, many Greek shipowners are currently obtaining ship financing from Chinese banks equivalent to 70% of the ship price, with the remaining funds sourced from European and American banks.
According to the Clarkson report in September, as of now, Greek shipowners have ordered a total of 134 vessels this year, ranking first globally, followed by Chinese shipowners with 131 vessels, and shipowners from Norway, Germany, and South Korea ordering 86, 69, and 61 vessels respectively.
On October 1, according to the Wall Street Journal, leading Greek shipowners in the global shipping market have recently been actively pursuing new shipbuilding projects, prompting Chinese shipyards to accelerate their order-taking pace. With advantages in low-interest ship financing, competitive ship prices, and improved ship quality, China is gradually attracting Greek shipowners to place orders. Five years ago, the number of vessels ordered by Greek shipowners from Chinese shipyards was less than half of those ordered from South Korea, but it has recently approached parity with South Korea.
Angeliki Frangou, CEO of Navios Maritime Holdings, stated that Greek shipowners are planning to expand their fleet size. In this context, Chinese shipyards are offering competitive pricing, and financially capable shipowners prefer to place orders now that ship prices have dropped to lower levels.
Industry experts predict that this situation is not only occurring among Greek shipowners; shipowners from other countries may also actively enter the new shipbuilding market in China.