ECONOMY

Tenders add term for ‘other currency’

As uncertainty about Greece’s future in the eurozone grows, the first official documents making reference to “payments in euros or any national Greek currency at the time” have made an appearance, at the Municipal Port Fund of Rethymno, Crete.

This provision is seen in at least two tenders announced by the Cretan city’s port fund in February and March and it related to the financial obligations of contractors who win concession rights from the fund for the next five years.

The first tender, launched in February, pertained to the concession of a part of the port for the creation and operation of floating catering facilities (i.e. bars and restaurants), while the second, called in March, regarded the lease of a building for the operation of tourism corporate offices.

By including the currency clause in the tenders, the Rethymno Port Fund is obviously trying to secure its future revenues in the case that Greece exits the common currency bloc. This is not something it includes in its contracts on a regular basis, as in a tender proclaimed in May 2011 regarding the Rethymno marina, it demanded that the contractor “pay the price in euros,” without adding anything about another currency.

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