More specifically, in the final ceremony, which was held on Tuesday, April 8th, in the presence of representatives and stakeholders of the tourism market, our Group was awarded as follows:
• Gold Award in the category “ New Fleet” and
• Silver Award in the category “Community & Social Development”
The greatest distinction in the category “New Fleet” was awarded in recognition of the company’s substantial investment of 140 million Euro amid the current economic crisis, of Blue Star Ferries, subsidiary of Attica Group, for the design, construction and operation of two ultra modern, high-speed passenger/car ferries: Blue Star Delos and Blue Star Patmos.
The two brand new vessels were deployed since November 2011 in the Cyclades route and since July 2012 in the Chios-Mytilene route, respectively. Their operation amid those difficult times was a huge step for the shipping services of Greece and contributes to the development of tourism and by extent the islands, to the benefit of islanders and visitors.
Equally significant was the Silver Award in the category “Community & Social Development”, with the corporate responsibility program of our Group, “Sun Protection”. The program has been taking place since 2008 in the islands of the Aegean, in cooperation with the NGO Melampous, and combines free tests for moles and skin tumors, their surgical removal, as well as informative lectures about the dangers of prolonged sun exposure and ways of prevention.
More specifically and since 2008, under the umbrella of this program, we:
• Visited 14 islands
• Examined 3,371 people
• Conducted 102 surgical removals and biopsies, as well as
• 854 mappings and photographies
• Diagnosed 23 malignant neoplasms
Attica Group is engaged in the passenger shipping industry with Superfast Ferries and Blue Star Ferries vessels in the Adriatic Sea and the Greek Domestic Lines (Cyclades, Dodecanese, North East Aegean islands and Crete). The Attica Group fleet consists of 13 modern and technologically advanced vessels, providing high quality transportation services for passengers, cargo and private vehicles.
Athens, April 10, 2014