Indeed, while the net growth of the merchant fleet has been marginal, Greeks re-established themselves at the top of the ownership ladder regaining the ranking ceded to Japan for a few months over 2011 / 2012.
As cross-traders, what is impressive is just how steady the fleet has been in turbulent times, growing its trading capacity each year. Reflecting this growth in capacity, and bigger ships, is the decline in the ship numbers since the peaked in 2007 at near 4,200 ships of over 1,000gt.
According to a review by the London-based Greek Shipping Co-operation Committee (GSCC) besides the continuing decline of the home flag, and overall ship numbers, the new ship orderbook is also down.
At mid-March, Greek interests controlled 3,677 vessels of 264.1m dwt and 155.99m gt. This represents a decrease of 86 vessels, but an increase of 1.282m dwt to the highest level ever. This includes 282 vessels, of various categories, of 18.4m gt, on order from shipyards, down from the 437 vessels, of 25.47m gt on order 12 months ago, and two-thirds less than the 826 ships on order at the same time in 2010.
These figures reflect the renewal of the fleet. Though newbuildings are being commissioned for Greek interests at an unprecedented rate, the size of the fleet has remained steady indicating the high level of scrapping and disposal of uneconomical tonnage taking place in parallel.
Just how steady the fleet has remained can been seen when considering that from the beginning of 2008, the carrying capacity has increased 1.7% and during that time, considering ups and downs, the fleet’s carrying capacity of has varied less than 3%.
The fleet flying the home flag now comprises 829 ships, of 73.45m dwt (43.3167m gt), some 23% of the total fleet, against 862 ships of 74.5m dwt and 43.63m gt in 2012. While the Greek flag remains the top flag, Greeks ships now trade under some 43 flags.
On 17 April, the Athens parliament began debating a new shipping law which aims at tackling bureaucracy and other disincentives to raising the Greek flag. Further, the registration of ships went on-line in March in another bid to reverse the flag’s decline.
The GSCC says the flag’s decline is “due in part to the previous concerns relating to the structural organisation of the Greek flag administration, a situation which is now in the process being resolved”.
Average age of the Greek-controlled fleet stands at 10.2 years as against 20.3 years in 2000, and is now some two years below the world, 11.3 years, influenced by the age of the shortsea fleet including the ferry fleet.
Greeks control just under 23% of the world’s oil tanker fleet in ships, 15% of the ore / bulk fleet, 9% of the liquid gas fleet, 6% of the pure container fleet, but just 1.9% of the world's general cargo fleet.
