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Piraeus Port is the busiest port in Greece. The port handled 1.37 million TEUs in 2007. It is the gateway port of Attica region including the capital city of Athens, the wealthiest region in Greece, accounting for about 50% of total GDP of the country. It is estimated that 80% of the Greek imports are destined for Attica. Furthermore, its proximity to important gateway ports, such as ports in Turkey and Black Sea, increases its attractiveness as a transshipment hub in Eastern Mediterranean. COSCO Pacific is making its greatest efforts to develop the TERMINAL to be a modern terminal providing reliable, flexible and highly efficient container handling services to international shippers. COSCO Pacific strongly supports PCT to build up an excellent workforce in Greece with more job opportunities to cope with the future demand of terminal services of our customers. PCT will provide an attractive workplace by implementing incentive schemes for staff benefit and quality training program for employees’ technical skills. COSCO Pacific’s global experience and together with its total commitment to its customers and employees are fundamental core values and crucial factors in its success. The Company believes that employees are its most valuable assets and key supports to its competitive advantage. The competence of workforce enables the TERMINAL to provide highly efficient and cost effective terminal services for the shipping industry so as to increase the attractiveness of the TERMINAL as the first choice of call for shippers. With its well established terminal network, COSCO Pacific has been maintaining good customer relationships with the global leading shipping companies. The customer base of COSCO Pacific is further strengthened by the strong support of its ultimate parent company, China Ocean Shipping (Group) Company which is the world’s second largest shipping enterprise, and its affiliate company, COSCO Container Lines Company Limited which is the sixth largest global shipping company. These good customer relationships will further enhance the competitive advantage of Piraeus Container Terminal to retain existing customers and attract new clients. The competition of container terminal business has intensified with the economic downturn. However, it is encouraging to see that the narrowing decline of trading activities shows the sign of improvement. Joint efforts of major countries in the world by applying substantial financial stimulus program will help the recovery of global economy. COSCO Pacific is looking forward to joining hands together with the port and shipping communities in Greece so as to further enhance the function of Piraeus Port serving the shipping industry as a "Gateway to Greece and South Europe". As Piraeus Port is moving forward to further strengthening its leading port position in Mediterranean, COSCO Pacific strongly believes that PCT will have a bright future by creating value for its stakeholders including shareholders, customers, employees and Greek society. For COSCO Pacific, the Concession of Piers 2 and 3 of Piraeus Port will further enable the Company to realize the full potential of its strengthened business model in terms of its business performance and corporate social responsibility. Since its listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 1994, the Company has been making its most efforts to be a leader in good corporate governance. It has been the proud recipients of many awards, granted in recognition of its well-managed business operations, transparency, accountability and corporate governance. Among which, the Board of COSCO Pacific had the greatest honor to be presented the “Director of The Year” awards organized by the Hong Kong Institute of Directors in 2006. COSCO Pacific does not take it for granted the trust its stakeholders place in it. The Company has therefore set itself new benchmarks in its accountability to shareholders and in its responsibility to the community which the Company pursues to continue to build that trust. This trust will ultimately help to shape its definition of success. About COSCO Pacific In 1994, COSCO Pacific (stock code: 1199) was publicly listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. For the past 15 years, COSCO Pacific has built a terminal business portfolio include 22 terminal operations located in China, Singapore, Belgium, Egypt plus our latest investment in Greece in 2009. In 2008, its terminal portfolio handled 46 million TEUs of containers in 2008 representing a 17.7% increase compared with 2007, making it one of the fastest growing global container terminal operators. The annual throughput also achieved a five-year compound annual growth of 20% from 2004 to 2008. COSCO Pacific has built a terminal portfolio with strong presence in China. In 2008, about 90% of its total throughput was generated from the four major economic zones along the coastal areas in China, namely Bohai Rim, Yantze River Delta, Pearl River Delta and Southeast Coast. The remaining 10% of total throughput was generated by its overseas terminals in port of Singapore, port of Antwerp in Belgium and port of Said in Egypt. For the past few years, COSCO Pacific has achieved a very impressive overseas terminal business development. In 2003, the Company commenced to operate its first overseas terminal, COSCO-PSA Terminal in Singapore. This was followed by another two terminal investments in Antwerp Terminal in Belgium in 2005 and Suez Canal Terminal in Port Said in Egypt in 2007. The aggregate throughput of these 3 overseas terminals achieved a five-year compound annual growth of 70% from 600,000 TEUs in 2004 to 4.7 million TEUs in 2008. COSCO Pacific dedicates its effort to further strengthening its position as a leading global port operator by building a stronger portfolio and expanding a larger terminal business platform. COSCO Pacific mission is to create long-term and sustainable value for our shareholders by providing superior services to our customers through a well-balanced portfolio and network. For further information about COSCO Pacific, please retrieve the Company’s website www.coscopac.com.hk. Source: COSCO Pacific Limited |
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On 1 October 2009, COSCO Pacific Limited (“COSCO Pacific” or “Company”) is pleased to
announce the commencement of its concession to operate Piers 2 and 3 at the terminal facility
at the Port of Piraeus in Greece (the “TERMINAL”). The concession provides for an initial
term of 30 years with a 5-year extension (“35-year Concession” or “Concession”), and is being
undertaken by the Company’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Piraeus Container Terminal S.A.
(“PCT”).