The completion of 13 major port infrastructure upgrade projects, with a total budget of €78.4 million, was announced by the Minister of Shipping and Island Policy Vasilis Kikilias.
The projects, which concern island and mainland areas of Greece, strengthen the safety, functionality, accessibility, and resilience of ports.
They are part of the ministry’s broader plan for the modernization of port infrastructure and the improvement of connectivity for islands and coastal areas.
The interventions were financed primarily by the National Recovery and Resilience Plan “Greece 2.0”, while a number of projects also made complementary use of national, regional, own, and other development resources.
The program includes, among other things, dredging and restoration of operational depths, repairs to moles and quays, construction of new piers and ramps, strengthening of mooring and safety infrastructure, coastline protection works, road connections to ports, and interventions to improve accessibility in land port zones.
Of particular importance are the projects in Alexandroupoli, the Holy Monastery of Megisti Lavra, Stylida, and Volos, with a total budget of approximately €59.3 million, which strengthen navigation, commercial operation, connectivity, and the resilience of critical port infrastructure.
In Alexandroupoli, dredging works were carried out in the port basin and channel, as well as a road connection of the port with the new Ring Road.
In Stylida, the dredging of the port basin and the widening of the channel were completed for the safer reception of ships, while in Volos the operational depths of the port were restored after the damage caused by storms Daniel and Elias.
At the Holy Monastery of Megisti Lavra, a new pier and breakwater, access road, bridges, and parking area were constructed, while at the Holy Monastery of Iviron a new breakwater was built, the jetty was extended, and access infrastructure was upgraded.
Interventions were also completed in Ios, with restoration of quays, lighting, utilities, and safety equipment, in Argostoli, with redevelopment of the waterfront zone, sidewalk, bicycle path, and accessibility infrastructure, as well as in Heraklion, where damage to the windward mole was repaired and its armoring was extended.
In Symi, quays were constructed at the Petalo location and new mooring infrastructure was built; in Lakki of Leros, the passenger/vehicle ferry pier was restored and the pier armoring was reinforced, while in Agia Roumeli a new passenger/vehicle ferry service ramp was constructed for safer approach even in adverse conditions.
In Megisti (Kastellorizo), urgent restoration and protection works were carried out at the port, while in Sitia submerged breakwaters were constructed and artificial beach nourishment was carried out for the protection of the coastline.
The Minister of Shipping and Island Policy Vasilis Kikilias stated: “The value of a project is evident when it is delivered to citizens and makes their daily lives better. With the Recovery Fund as the main financing tool, we are turning available resources into completed projects and projects into an upgraded quality of life for citizens.
This is the measure of our work: the result that reaches the citizen. Safer and more functional ports, supporting the life and development of every area. We do not stop here. We continue making use of national and European resources to ensure better and safer infrastructure”.
Six of the interventions combine financing from the Recovery Fund with resources from the Sectoral Development Program of the Ministry of Shipping and Island Policy, as well as regional, national, or own resources of the bodies.
The Ministry of Shipping and Island Policy continues a plan that always places at its center the safety and upgrading of port infrastructure with resources from the ESPA 2021-2027 and the new Sectoral Development Program 2026-2030 of YNANP.