Concession of the Piraeus container terminal: turbulent times and the quest for competitiveness

This paper examines the recent concession of the Port of Piraeus (OLP) container terminal to Cosco Pacific. Serious discussions on how to transform the terminal to landlord status started in 2004 and, after an aborted tender, a concession award was approved by the Greek parliament in 2009. The contract is now operational after strong opposition by the port unions and a renegotiation phase in 2010. In this turbulent context, the economic implications of the particulars that dominated the negotiations and the provisions that were included in the final concession agreement (i.e. duration, conditions, competition issues, etc.) are worth examination. The analyses of the history, the design of the concession strategy that was endorsed by the relevant policy-makers (i.e. national ministry, port authority, etc.), and the implementation choices made provide an assessment of how the details of the concession might enhance/hamper the conclusion of the concession agreement and affect the organisation and the competitive position of the port.