Grimaldi Group

Heraklion Port is increasingly establishing itself on the map of commercial transport and cruise tourism. The port was recently acquired by the Grimaldi Group (Grimaldi Euromed SpA – Minoan Lines), which purchased a 67% majority stake for €80 million.

Greek shipping has now become an oligopolistic market, which is essentially controlled mainly by only 2 companies. The Attica group and the Seajets group are owned by Mr Marios Iliopoulos.

The controlling stake of 67% in Iraklio Port Authority will be transferred in the next few weeks to Italy's Grimaldi Group, which prevailed in the relevant tender. It will be preceded by the ratification of the concession contract by the Parliament and the financial settlement of the transaction.

Grimaldi Group's Minoan Lines has now applied ticket price hikes of 2.4% for passengers and vehicles for the Piraeus-Crete route, with passengers paying an extra euro per trip and vehicles charged an extra euro per meter of length.

Similar increases, of the order of 2.7%, are also being applied by the other major ferry company that connects Piraeus with Crete, the Attica Group.

Coastal shipping sources consider the decision of Italy's Grimaldi group to add two more ships to the Greece-Italy line as a "declaration of war."

On Friday the Italian group announced it was doubling the number of ferries on the Adriatic route, with two of them sailing from Ancona to Patra and the other two from Ancona to Igoumenitsa.

Dr Emanuele Grimaldi on Friday revealed his coastal shipping group's interest in new acquisitions not only in the Greek ferry market but also in the Greek ports system.

If Greek coastal shipping giant Attica Group, which operates Blue Star, Superfast Ferries and Hellenic Seaways, were to be put up for sale in future, Italy's Grimaldi Group would be interested in buying the Athens-listed group.

Minoan Lines, part of Italy's Grimaldi Group, on Tuesday announced it is halting its Adriatic routes after 35 years.

The Greek company will instead operate as the general sales agent in Greece for its parent group and seek new domestic routes.

Grimaldi Group, a private shipping company based in Naples, Italy, announced that the ferry link between the Greek cities of Patras and Igoumenitsa and Italian city Ravenna will be restored.

The route will be serviced by Italian-flagged Catania ferry, beginning on Monday.