According to the agreement signed by both parties, products from ZTE destined for 12 countries—Croatia, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Austria, Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania, Italy, Spain, Portugal, and Cyprus—will be transshipped through the Piraeus terminal.
Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras attended the signing ceremony and delivered a speech. Samaras pointed out that the Port of Piraeus, which connects to the Greek railway system and the entire Central and Eastern European region, is an important international transport hub and a powerful engine for Greece's development. The cooperation agreement between ZTE and COSCO will effectively utilize the infrastructure of the Port of Piraeus, boost confidence in Greece, and promote the country's stability.
Chinese Ambassador to Greece Zou Xiaoli stated in his address that the official establishment of the ZTE logistics center at the Port of Piraeus is another significant step forward in the strategic cooperation between COSCO and ZTE, and a new achievement in the development history of the port. It will attract new investors to Greece and increase local employment.
COSCO Group obtained a 35-year concession for the No. 2 and No. 3 container terminals at the Port of Piraeus in 2009 and officially took over operations in 2010. Over the past few years, the cargo throughput of the Piraeus terminal has increased rapidly from 685,000 TEUs in 2010 to 2.52 million TEUs in 2013.