Piraeus Port, the chief sea port of Athens, Greece, has participated in the China International Import Expo for five consecutive years since 2018, and once again signed up for this year's expo.

Thanks to the CIIE, the ancient port that has experienced a period of decline due to the financial crisis, has regained vitality and become an important node in joint building of the Belt and Road Initiative through cooperation with China COSCO Shipping Corporation.

Piraeus Port's container throughput reached 5.65 million TEUs in 2019 after participating in the inaugural CIIE in 2018, an increase of over 15 percent compared to the previous year, with 40 percent of the total container volume coming from China, according to the port's operational data.

Backed by the Chinese market, Piraeus Port has risen to become the largest port in the Mediterranean and the fourth largest port in Europe since 2019, serving as a gateway for countries participating in the Belt and Road Initiative for Chinese exports.

In 2020, the shadow of the COVID-19 pandemic impacted the global shipping industry. "During the epidemic, we overcame many difficulties and did not miss any editions of the CIIE. At the expo, together with China COSCO Shipping Group, we spared no effort to promote the services of Piraeus Port, including its developed feeder network and railway network," said Zhang Zhiming, general manager of the Board of Directors of Piraeus Port Authority S.A.

"At that time, many Chinese foreign trade companies were struggling with difficulties and delays in North American and European ports. The CIIE provided a rare opportunity for communication between Piraeus Port, shipping and logistics companies, and cargo owners, and it was a perfect match."

Zhang Zhiming (right) introduces the Piraeus Port to a professional visitor at the CIIE. [Photo/CIIE Bureau]

Financial data also showed that in 2022, Piraeus Port achieved operating revenue of 198.13 million euros and a total profit of 75.31 million euros, an increase of 28.5 percent and 53.1 percent, respectively, compared to the previous year, setting a new record since the establishment of the Piraeus Port Authority in 1930.

The CIIE has brought new friends from the East for Piraeus Port and reconnected the international logistics supply chain that was disrupted by the epidemic, benefiting not only the port itself. According to reports from local research institutions, Piraeus Port has directly created 3,000 jobs and indirectly created 10,000 jobs. The local logistics output value has increased from 400 million euros to 2.5 billion euros, boosting Greece's GDP by 0.8 percent.

"We are now building Piraeus Port into a distribution hub for Asian automobile and spare parts logistics. For us, this is a brand new growth point. For Chinese auto companies, this is a new channel for Chinese automobiles to go global," Zhang said.

By Cao Desheng

Wang Li from Jiefang Daily contributed to the story.