2.5 



GREECE 



Greece has one of the largest fishing fleets in Europe, but 90 percent of the fleet consists of small, wooden 

 vessels. The Greek high-seas fleet in 1992 included 17 vessels, including three vessels over 2,000-GRT registering 

 a total of 6,975 Gross Registered Tons (GRT). Most of the Greek high-seas fishing fleet operates out of ports along 

 the shores of West Africa, where it has fished for years. There is little to suggest that Greek fishing vessels will 

 venture into distant-water fisheries beyond their present fishing areas, which also include the Falkland Islands. The 

 EC is providing grants to modernize the Greek fleet and is attempting to move Greek fishermen into new distant 

 fishing grounds. Greek vessels might be attracted by fishing opportunities off Argentina that were negotiated by 

 the European Community in 1992. A Greek fishing company plans to begin fishing in Iranian waters in 1993 or 

 1994. 



CONTENTS 



1. General Background 91 



2. Fleet Background 92 



3 . Modernization Programs 92 



4. Decommissioning Programs 92 



5. Shipyards 93 



6. International Agreements 93 



7. Fleet Dispersal Plans 93 



Sources 93 



Endnotes 98 



1. General Background 



Greek landings of fish and shellfish amounted to 

 149,000 tons in 1991 valued at $762 million. The 

 Greek catch included 138,400 tons caught in the 

 Mediterranean off the coast of Greece and 16,000 

 tons caught in distant waters. In 1991, the Greek 

 fishing fleet included 20,860 inshore vessels 

 averaging slightly under 5 tons (95,000 GRT total), 

 849 offshore vessels (42,452 tons), and 82 high-seas 

 vessels (26,000 tons), averaging about 317 GRT per 

 vessel. Ninety seven percent of the fleet consists of 

 small, coastal vessels, mostly longliners, gillnetters, 

 and small trawlers. 



The Greek fishery is divided into several 

 categories: Coastal (Inshore) fishing, which operates 

 along the Greek coastline, close to natural ports. 

 Offshore fishing operates in areas in the North 

 African Mediterranean coast. Distant-water (high- 

 seas) fishing operates in the Central Atlantic and off 

 the West African coastline. The vessels in this fleet 

 include fairly small craft, as well as large vessels. 

 Sponge fishing takes place off the coast of Greece 

 and in the Mediterranean.' Despite an extensive 

 coastline of about 15,000 kilometers and a shelf area 

 of 57,000 square kilometers, the nation's offshore 

 resources are not suitable for large harvests. Oceanic 

 conditions in the Mediterranean, although providing 



91 



