The Greek government has confirmed a $680 million investment plan aimed at modernizing the country's port infrastructure At an infrastructure conference held in Athens last week, Greek Deputy Minister of Maritime Affairs Stefanos Gkikas stated that the port upgrade projects will focus primarily on the island ports Greece.

Stefanos Gkikas added: "This upgrade is a basic priority, aiming to give the islands equal competitiveness conditions compared to the Greek mainland and international."

For many years, stakeholders in Greek ports have highlighted the issue of dilapidated port infrastructure. For example, some ports on Greek islands have not been renovated for than 30 years. This means that these port facilities are limited in the types of vessels and cargo they can accommodate. The Panhellenic Association of Shipowners has condemned the state of Greek port facilities in its annual report. Some of the pressing challenges noted by the association include: decades of siltation, which has greatly reduced the depth of port; crumbling quays and lighthouses; and insufficient waiting space.

To address some of these challenges, Stefanos Gkikas said that the Ministry of Maritime has secured $210 million from the 2021-2027 National Strategic Reference Framework (NSRF) Transport Program. This plan, supported by EU funds also includes additional funding from Greece, which will be used to upgrade 30 island ports. Notably, 21 of these port upgrade projects have been incorporated into projects implemented by the Greek National Fund for Growth.

In addition, Greece has secured $93 million from the EU's Recovery and Resilience Facility. These funds will support the planned upgrades of island and regional ports. A significant focus of this upgrade work is the green transformation of ports. Stefanos Gkikas expects that at least 1 ports will be equipped with shore power systems by 2029. A total of $110 million has been allocated for feasibility studies for shore power in ports such asrio, Rafina, Kavala, and Corfu.

The green transformation component of the plan is expected to cost $310 million, with nearly half of funding provided by the Island Decarbonization Fund. This fund, co-initiated by Greece, the EU, and the European Investment Bank, is intended in part to support transformation projects in the Greek islands.