Greece can evolve into a shipbuilding hub for the Eastern Mediterranean, Southeastern Europe and the Black Sea, leveraging its geographical position, the scale of the Greek shipping industry, and the growing requirements for energy and defense security, said the president of the Hellenic Shipyards Association and Head of ONEX Shipyards & Technologies, Panos Xenokostas, speaking at the Blue Strategy Summit 2026 on “Greece as a Strategic Link between Europe-America-Asia.”
Xenokostas argued that the country meets the requirements to assume a leading role in the new European shipbuilding and defense strategy, noting that critical energy corridors and infrastructure pass through Greece, which further reinforces the need to develop a strong domestic industrial and shipbuilding base. He referred to the strategic cooperation between Greece, the US and South Korea in the shipbuilding sector, with special reference to ONEX’s agreement with the South Korean Hanwha Group.
He stated that the objective is the transfer of know-how and technology, enabling Greece to move “from simple maintenance to autonomous domestic shipbuilding.” According to him, the new shipyard development model could deliver annual growth of 6-8% for the sector, with an impact of approximately 2% on GDP, while also creating thousands of new high-skilled jobs, primarily for engineers and technical personnel. He noted that the ecosystem’s annual turnover could reach €3 billion, while the target is for 50% of production to be directed to exports, including both vessels and maritime equipment.
