The issue of financing is the huge problem facing the shipbuilding industry in Europe and especially in Greece.
“It is a pity that the flow of capital has been limited and this is due to the lack of bank credit and knowledge of business risk. A necessary condition for the regeneration of the shipbuilding industry in Europe is the education of both shipowners in ESG principles and the education of banks in order to seize the financing opportunities of the sector where they exist,” George Xiradakis, founder & CEO of XRTC Business Consultants and President of the Association of Banking & Finance Executives of Hellenic Shipping, said in the context of the shipping forum entitled “Towards Greener Shipping-A reality check,” held by the French-Hellenic Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Xiradakis also referred to the lack of large areas where shipyards could be created in Europe and in Greece. And this lack is mainly due to the mentality of Europeans that shipyards are industrial sites harmful to the environment. It is necessary to reverse this mentality, given that shipyards now operate based on strict European environmental regulations.
Regarding the passenger shipbuilding industry, Europe has “missed the train,” Xiradakis said, who, having visited many European shipyards and ship design companies, noted the lack of coordination and the reluctance of Europeans to cooperate with each other. The Europeans transferred the know-how to the East, which, acting directly, is able to compete with them. Already, large European companies with fleets of passenger ships such as Grimaldi, Stena and Attica, through bareboat charters from Stena, have placed orders for the construction of ships in Chinese shipyards.
