Chinese officials discuss port deal with Greece

ATHENS, Jan 30 (Reuters) - Greece and China discussed the privatisation of the biggest Greek port of Piraeus on Tuesday as part of their expanding cooperation in areas ranging from culture to shipping.

Visiting Chinese state counsellor Hua Jianmin met with Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis and Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyanni and discussed ways to increase commercial ties, including Chinese interest in the sale of the port, Greek officials said.

Chinese shipping giant China Ocean Shipping (Group) Co. (COSCO) has been reported to be in talks to buy part of the Piraeus Port Authority to gain increased access to European markets.

State-owned COSCO group operates container terminal business mainly in China through its Hong Kong-listed arm, COSCO Pacific Ltd. .

Greece has slated Piraeus Port Authority, 74.1 percent owned by the Greek state and handling almost 60 percent of Greek shipping, for sale to a strategic partner this year.

Due to lengthy strikes at the port last year, the government said it was postponing all sale plans until the end of April.

After the meeting with Hua, Bakoyanni said Piraeus could form a direct, strategic link between Greece and China.

"Greek ports offer huge business opportunities, forming cargo hubs for Chinese products to the countries of Europe and the southeast Mediterranean," Bakoyanni told reporters.

Hua did not mention the port but said he had discussed expanding cooperation in shipping tourism and commerce.

"I believe our bilateral relations will become increasingly better in the future," Hua said.

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