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Despite the positive signals coming from Athens and Brussels, economic growth remains a distant goal for the country. This inevitably affects the activity of enterprises. We wanted to find out whether any of the major ferry companies might go bankrupt next year. "In Greece, it is very difficult to predict what might happen. We do not expect any changes in the market in the summer. However, do not ask me how things will develop in 2014 or 2015. This is not yet known to any of us," admits the chairman of the association.

In conclusion, he stresses that whatever changes occur in Greece, civil maritime transport will never cease to exist. "There will always be vessels that will connect the mainland with the islands, both in Greece and Italy. There are no two ways about it. There are problems, but you should not expect that the navy would collapse."

The head of the association of passenger shipping companies Michalis Sakelis expects that the 2013 season will be good. Early signs indicate that this year’s passenger volume will remain at 2012 levels, which is reassuring. Foreign tourists prefer the Cycladic Islands again and inter-island connections that allow the tourists to arrive to an island by plane and to go to the neighbouring islands by ferry remain the most profitable. "We are positive about this season’s results but we have to wait a bit to see the percentage of last minute sales."

The turn

We talked with Michalis Sakelis on Thursday evening when the main trade union organization had already signed collective labour agreements with the employers' organization. The main trade union body has unofficially buried the "war hatchet" which, most likely, is the basis of Sakelis’ explicit promise that there will be no more strikes this summer.

One organization (the Hellenic Union of Merchant Marine Staff) among the 11 trade unions which are subject to the PNO had decided to continue the strike. 11 of its members blocked the entrance to the "Penelope" ferry at the port of Rafina with two cars, demanding the immediate payment of the outstanding salaries for seven months. As a result, two strikers, namely the cashier and the general secretary of the union, were arrested for disturbing the peace. We could not find a representative of the union forces for a comment but the incident shows that this summer may not be as easy as hoped by the passengers and owners of ferry companies.