Ship fares to be liberalized on busy routes
Economy-class fares on busy ferry routes from the port of Piraeus to Greek islands or those served by at least three companies are to be liberalized in the next few days, in line with a recent announcement by Merchant Marine Minister Manolis Kefaloyiannis, sources said. The affected routes are: from Piraeus to Crete, Paros, Naxos, Santorini, Andros, Tinos, Myconos, Syros, Kos, Rhodes, Chios, Mytilene, Aegina, Methana, Porto Heli and possibly Patmos, Leros and Kalymnos. All other routes will operate under the so-called public service status, with their economy fares determined or subsidized by the government. The issue will be discussed by the Coastal Shipping Transport Council to convene on Monday. The European Commission has already sent a final warning to the minister of merchant marine regarding eight points in a 2001 law which contravene the EU regulation of 1992. Sources say the ministry is preparing to respond to Brussels’s reasoned opinion, citing the measures taken to harmonize Greek law with the EU regulation. Among the measures to be taken, the Stockholm Treaty is considered for adoption; it sets high safety levels for passenger ships but also abolishes age ceilings for their withdrawal. The ministry is still adamant on its insistence of crews’ knowledge of the Greek language and on crew composition. Fuel costs The council on Monday will also examine data from a study commissioned by the Coastal Shipowners’ Union (EEA) proving that costs from the increase of fuel prices last year grew by 9.8 percent. Data also show that the share of fuel out of ships’ total costs has risen from 20 percent a few years ago to 40 percent now. The survey found that the fuel costs reached 62 percent of overall costs of the big high-speed ferries and 49 percent of all costs for small high-speed passenger vessels. Conventional ferries saw their fuel account for 40 percent of their costs.
