State of progress for tenders for Greek marinas and ports

With the start yesterday of the process for the sub-concession of the Mega Yachts marina of Corfu, the Hellenic Asset Development Fund (HRADF) proceeded in a very timely manner with its planning for the first quarter of the year. The ports and marinas, which have largely kept alive the interest in the privatization program by showing resilience within the pandemic, are the fund’s mainstay at the beginning of this year. The process of utilizing the small port of Lefkimmi in southern Corfu will follow right after, while the big tenders for the ports of Kavala and Alexandroupolis are in progress.

Indicative of the dynamics that the tourist ports in our country can develop is the size of the global yacht market, which was valued at 8.15 billion dollars in 2020 and is expected to grow at a rate of 5.2% by 2028. Demand for yacht tourism in the Mediterranean is currently absorbed by 80% from France, Italy and Spain, while  the Northeastern Mediterranean countries (Greece, Croatia and Turkey) account for only 14% of this market.

Margins

So the margins for Greece are large and it already seems that things are revving up. It is indicative that in July 2021, Boat International, a magazine for super-yachts, located 834 boats over 37 meters in Greek waters, just behind France with 945 and Italy with 1,353. The Mega Yachts marina of the port of Corfu is considered to be in a privileged position since it’snext to the city and many tourist attractions, while it is a bridge between popular Greek and Mediterranean destinations.

It has the capacity to serve 98 boats up to 140 m long. And has a land area of ​​39,400 sq.m., while through a possible extension the marina will cover a land area of ​​approximately, at most, 100,000 sq.m. The current design includes, among other things, a hotel, restaurant, cafe-bar, shops, tennis courts, a supermarket and parking facilities. According to the issue of the announcement, the exact limits of the sub-conceded area will be defined in the 2nd phase of the tender, following the extension of the boundaries of the land port area of ​​Kerkyra Port Authority (OLKE) and the updated master plan.

The sub-concession of the marina for a period of at least 35 years concerns the right to build, operate, manage, maintain and operate the licensed marina of large pleasure boats located west of the cruise pier, near the Passenger Station of the port of Corfu. Regardless of the financial consideration that will be paid to the HRADF, the sub-concessionaire, as provided, will also be responsible for the payment of a compensatory fee to OLKE. This may in no case exceed 5% of the annual gross income of the subcontractor.

The two phases

The tender process will be conducted in two phases: the pre-selection phase (Phase A) and the binding phase (Phase B). Interested investors are invited to submit an expression of interest file on April 18, 2022.

The “ERNST & YOUNG Consulting Services Societe Anonyme” has been appointed Financial Advisor of the Fund “. The law firm “KLC Law Firm” is the legal advisor of the Fund, the “Doxiadis Office Consultants for Development and Housing SA” has been appointed as a technical consultant and the company “Port Consultants Rotterdam B.V.” as a business consultant.

Meanwhile, on March 15, 2022, an expression of interest is expected for the Itea marina. The international tender for the 40-year concession of the right to provide port management services and the use, operation, management and exploitation of movable and / or fixed assets within the land and sea zone of Itea Marina began in mid-January. In fact, the possibility of extending the duration of the concession for an additional 10 years is provided. The marine zone of the marina, which today hosts a small number of boats, occupies an area of ​​26,000 sq.m. and has the capacity to docḱ 146 small and medium-sized vessels. There are also 60 boat seats in the land area, which covers an area of ​​24,700 sq.m.

Final stretch

The HRADF competitions for the regional ports, meanwhile, are entering the final stretch. The investment interest is very high. At the end of the month, the submission of binding offers for the sub-concession of the commercial port of Kavala “Filippos B” is expected. The schemes that have passed the pre-selection phase are the following: QUINTANA INFRASTRUCTURE & DEVELOPMENT, IMERYS GREECE – GOLDAIR CARGO – INDUSTRIAL MINERALS OF GREECE, BLACK SUMMIT FINANCIAL GROUP- EFA GROUP- GEK TERNA AND ORGANISM ORGANISM.

At the end of April, the binding offers for the acquisition of at least 67% of the share capital of the Alexandroupolis Port Authority will follow, while by then the pending issues regarding the definition of the land zone and the obligations for reforested areas will have been closed. The following investment schemes have passed to the second phase of the tender: QUINTANA INFRASTRUCTURE & DEVELOPMENT, CAMERON – GOLDAIR CARGO – BOLLORE AFRICA LOGISTICS, BLACK SUMMI TFINANCIAL GROUP – EUROPORTS – EFA GROUP – GEORGEN.