Greek fishing industry sinking under Turkish pressures

A drop in Turkey’s tourism has redirected their bream from the domestic to the international market where 85% of Greece’s bream output is also headed.

A further drop in the Turkish currency has seen Ankara subsidising the air transport of Turkish bream leaving Greek aquaculture groups with little room to improve their competitiveness.

The anti-competitive hit comes at an unfortunate time as Greek banks are trying to secure the best price for their stakes in the Nireus and Selonda fish farming companies.

Industry sources have told Greece media that this poses a challenge for the sector as it could affect further investment.

There are quite a few investors, including the major US funds of Amerra Capital Management, Oaktree, Fortress, KKR, York Capital, Rhone Capital, Harvard Investment Group and Lone Star.

Alpha, Eurobank, National and Piraeus control a total of 75.9 % of Nireus and 82.1% of Selonda. They placed new managers in the fish farming companies and have achieved a rationalization of activities ahead of inviting investor interest soon.