The Hellenic Shortsea Shipowners Association (HSSA) operates since 1930 but it was officially found in 1940 under the name of “Mediterranean Cargo Vessels Shipowners Union”. The special nature of the shortsea shipping in combination with the intense competition the Greek fleet received during this period, made the establishment of a dedicated association a necessity. Nowadays, HSSA is the oldest Shortsea Shipping associations in Europe accounting 75 years of uninterrupted operation.

River boats consisted a major part of the Greek shortsea fleet, while during the previous century Greek shipowners developed significant activity in the Danube River, dominating the market in terms of number of ships and tonnage. Presently, HSSA is the only Greek shipowner association representing river transport. Diachronically, major shipowners used to be members of our association like Laskaridis, Tsakos, Nomikos, Markantonakis, Leventakism Daifa, Moundrea and Latsis.

HSSA keeps a full record of all matters relevant to the industry and provides to its members continuous and reliable information. Mediates to the Ministry of Mercantile Marine and other related Ministries to support the settlement of problems faced by its members. Besides monitoring and dealing with current issues HSSA follows latest developments in shipping, both at E.U. and international level where maritime affairs are discussed with the aim of promoting the positions of Hellenic Shortsea Shipping. It also assists its members in resolving problems faced by their ships in foreign ports.