Papademos touted as ECB No. 2
The government said yesterday it would be happy to see its central bank governor take on an enhanced role in the eurozone but played down reports he had become a candidate for vice president of the European Central Bank (ECB). Greek media has begun touting Bank of Greece Governor Lucas Papademos as a leading contender to take over the ECB’s No. 2 job after Christian Noyer leaves in May. Papademos was not available for comment, but Greek government spokesman Christos Protopappas, when asked, made clear that the government was happy with the work Papademos has done in bringing Greece into the eurozone and would be pleased to see him in a larger role. «Hopefully, Mr Papademos will in the end take on a more general, even more important, position within the system of central banks,» Protopappas said.(Reuters) TVX’s operations in Halkidiki have been plagued by permit delays and opposition by local residents since it acquired a former state-owned gold processing plant at Olympias, on the Cassandra peninsula southeast of Thessaloniki. The investment, which the company says amounts to more than $250 million, has been billed as one of the largest ever in Greece, but its future looks uncertain after the Council of State, the country’s highest administrative court, reportedly ruled against it last April, citing environmental concerns. The ruling was reported in the Greek press but has not been officially released by the court.
