Based on the agreements signed this weekend between the Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou and his Chinese counterpart, Wen Jiabao Hellenic owners are set to take on huge sums of Chinese credit to build more ships in the People’s Republic. China is expected to help finance the purchase of Chinese ships by Greek shipping companies with the creation of a five-billion-dollar fund. Wen said a $5 billion shipping fund will be set up to facilitate the sale of Chinese vessels to Hellenic shipowners who are currently building more than 300 ships in China.
According to George Xiradakis, managing director of Piraeus-based consultancy XRTC, who advised on the deal, one of the shipping agreements involves the delivery of a VLCC tanker and is the first Greek-Chinese shipping deal to be entirely financed by a Chinese bank. It will be financed by China Development Bank and involves Greek company Cardiff Marine, Mr. Xiradakis said.
According to George Xiradakis, managing director of Piraeus-based consultancy XRTC, who advised on the deal, one of the shipping agreements involves the delivery of a VLCC tanker and is the first Greek-Chinese shipping deal to be entirely financed by a Chinese bank. It will be financed by China Development Bank and involves Greek company Cardiff Marine, Mr. Xiradakis said.