by Lloyd's List

1 October 2024 (Lloyd's List) - PIRAEUS, the largest port in Greece, has posted a record first-half result despite seeing container transhipment traffic being hit by Red Sea disruption.

Revenues for the Piraeus Port Authority increased by 4.6% to €107.1m ($118.6m), thanks mainly to a huge 60% increase in revenues from the car terminal that contributed an additional €6.2m in income.

It was also a strong first six months for the port’s cruise business, which increased by 13.2% in revenue terms.

Even the container sector brought in 4% higher revenue than in the first half of 2023.

This was in spite of throughput at the Piraeus Container Terminal, run by Cosco Shipping Ports and accounting for the lion’s share of Piraeus’ box handling, dropping by 13% to 2m teu as containerships diverted from the Red Sea because of attacks by the Houthis.

The PPA’s post-tax profit rose by 4.4% to €40.4m, from €38.7m in the first half of last year.

“Instability and the challenging geopolitical conditions in the Middle East persist,” said PPA chairman Lin Ji.

“However, our company and the port of Piraeus continued to achieve strong results, sustaining our upward momentum, as we have consistently done over time.”

He said the result demonstrated “the soundness of our strategy and the dedicated efforts that have ensured the port’s reliability and, above all, its resilience”.

Piraeus is among a number of east Mediterranean transhipment hubs that have seen traffic affected as Houthi threats have forced many vessels to take the longer route around Cape Horn rather than transit the Suez Canal.

Cosco is the main shareholder in the PPA, with a stake of 67%.