Minister of Development, Takis Theodorikakos, accompanied by the General Secretary of Private Investments, Stellina Siarapi, visited the Elefsis Shipyards.
According to an announcement by the Ministry of Development, Theodorikakos met with the founder and managing director of the ONEX Technologies group, Panos Xenokostas, as well as with the Ambassador of the United States in Greece, George Tsunis, whose contribution was critical for the implementation of the large investment made in the shipyards.
The Minister of Development was given a presentation on the achievements to date, as well as the future goals of ONEX, he was given a tour at the facilities, talked with employees, as well as with the young children who are trained in the shipyards within the framework of the DYPA programs.
Theodorikakos pointed out that the investments in the shipbuilding industry will be considered of a strategic nature and he added that the field of shipbuilding repair will offer more and more opportunities for safe work. On his part, Xenokostas thanked the Minister and the government as a whole for the long-term support for the investment made in the Elefsis shipyards.
The shipbuilding industry at the center of the new production model
“The shipbuilding industry, the blue economy of our country, is at the center of the new production model. It is not possible for a country like Greece, which is a powerful naval power, to not have an equally powerful shipbuilding and ship repair industry. That is why the government strongly supports the new plan for the shipbuilding industry,” he noted.
“ONEX, established in the shipyards of Elefsis for 1.5 years, has achieved a turnover at the two shipyards that is expected to exceed 120 million euros in 2024. It is a major thing that 450 workers are working and being paid normally. And we are creating a new potential for the shipyard.
“I would like to relay two messages: new investments in the shipbuilding industry will be considered by the Ministry of Development and our government to be of a strategic nature, with all that this entails in terms of facilitating their implementation as regards speed, momentum and results, so as to significantly increase their influence and effect on the entire Greek economy. The second is these young people who are trained here under the Public Employment Service (DYPA) programmes of the Ministry of Labor. The field of shipbuilding and ship repair will offer more and more opportunities for employment, safe employment, for young people who want to work and produce in this area.”
