Footnotes / references source for financial figure:[6]
ANEK Lines (Ανώνυμη Ναυτιλιακή Εταιρεία Κρήτης, Anonymi Naftiliaki Eteria Kritis, Anonymous Shipping Company of Crete) was one of the largest passenger shipping companies in Greece.[citation needed] It was founded in 1967 by numerous shareholders who were inhabitants of Crete.[citation needed] It operated passenger ferries, mainly on Piraeus-Crete and Adriatic Sea lines.
In December 2023 Attica Group absorbed 100% of ANEK Lines.[2] The ANEK Lines brand continues to be used by Attica Group.
History
F/B ElyrosH/S/F Hellenic Spirit
In Crete protests broke out after the Typaldos Lines car ferry SS Heraklion capsized due to a series of safety regulations violations. The ship sank on her way from Chania to Piraeus on 8 December 1966, resulting in the death of more than 200 people.[citation needed]
In the aftermath a few hundreds of Cretans (traders, free-lancers, pensioners, farmers) following a proposal by the Association of Economists of the Chania Prefecture and the support of the Metropolitan of Kissamos and Selinos, Irineos Galanakis, implement their idea to found a multi-shareholder shipping company.[7][failed verification]
Therefore, on
1967 - 10 April, ANEK Lines was founded with its head offices located at Chania. At the beginning only born Cretans could hold stocks in ANEK Lines.[citation needed]
1970 The company's first F/B vessel Kydon started servicing the route Piraeus-Chania
1973 The F/B's Candia and Rethymo started servicing the route Piraeus-Iraklion
1978 The F/B Kriti started daily servicing the route Piraeus-Chania[7]
1987 The F/B Apterastarted servicing the route Piraeus-Chania
New route Crete-Thessaloniki started (route closed then suddenly)[8]
1989 The F/B's Lato and Lissos started servicing the route Patras-Corfu/Igoumenitsa-Ancona[7]
ANEN was founded. ANEK Lines holds 20% of its shares
F/B Lefka OriF/B Kriti II
2000 The F/B Lefka Ori was purchased, fully renovated and started servicing the route Patras-Ancona.
ANEK Lines increase its shares to 41,9% of the share-capital of DANE
ANEK Lines buys 50% of the share-capital of ETANAP
ANEK Lines buys 62% of the share-capital of LEFKA ORI A.B.E.E.
Contract signed with the Norwegian shipyard Fosen Mek Shipyard for the shipbuilding of two new buildings (first time for ANEK) with delivery dates October 2000 and May 2001 with an option for two more.
Delivery of the newly constructed Olympic Champion servicing the route Patra - Ancona which completes the route Igoumenitsa - Ancona in 15 hours.
ANEK Lines increases its share-capital (25% = 9.5 billion drachmas / 27.88 million EUROs)
The F/B's Candia and Rethymno are sold
ANEK Lines increases its share-capital in NEL to 19.05%
2001 Established online connections to the international booking systems START, MERLIN, AMADEUS and SIGMA
Delivery of the second newly constructed H/S/F Hellenic Spirit servicing along with the H/S/F Olympic Champion the route Patra - Igoumenitsa - Ancona reducing the travelling time from Igoumenitsa - Ancona to 15 hours.
The former Patras-Ancona operating ships, Kriti I and Kriti II, were deployed then on Patras-Triest and Ravena-Catania (Kriti I)[8]
2002 The F/B's Kriti I & Kriti II deployed on the Piraeus-Heraklion service[8]
2003 ANEK Lines set up a ro/ro operations called ANEK CARGO for the routes Piraeus–Heraklion, Patras–Bari and Patras–Venice[8]
2005 in May ANEK sold its 16.5% shares in NEL Lines to Edgewater Holdings with a €0.5 million profit[10]
in November the F/B Aptera was sold with a €2.5m. net profit[10]
the new Patras-Venice route is added to the route to Northern Italy[7]
the construction of the company's building is completed as well as the relocation of administrative services to the company-owned, functional establishment in Chania(Karamanli avenue former Souda Avenue)[7]
2007 in February the company's latest establishment in Piraeus is inaugurated, housing the Directorate of Commercial Exploitation, the Directorate of Technical Services and the Piraeus main agency[7]
2008 in April the P/S-F/S Prevelis entered service on the Piraeus-Paros-Naxos-Ios-Santorini line[7]
in July 2008 the P/S-F/S Lissos entered service between Piraeus and Chios-Mytilini[7]
in September 2008 the P/S-F/S Elyros entered service between Piraeus and Chania[7]
in December 2008 ANEK was awarded a prize as "The Best Passenger Line of the Year 2008" during the 5th Greek Shipping Awards ceremony hosted by Lloyd's List[7]
2010 April, ANEK established a new subsidiary AIGAION PELAGOS THALASSIES GRAMMES SHIPPING COMPANY (Chania), to charter and operate the east Aegean and specifically the Piraeus-Syros-Mykonos-Ikaria-Fourni–Samos route and in September this new company undertook the Heraklion route which it is servicing by chartering Parent Company's vessels[11]
2011 1 June, ANEK Lines started a 3-year joint service agreement with Attica Group (Superfast, Blue Star Ferries) for the route Patras–Igoumenitsa–Ancona and Piraeus–Irakleion under the name ANEK-Superfast. Therefore, ANEK deploy its ferry Olympic Champion from the Ancona service (now a joint venture operations with ANEK's Lefka Ori and the Superfast VI and XI) to the Irakleio service (now a joint venture operations with Superfast XII).[7]
2012 14 June, F/B Lato deployed in the international line Bari - Durrës in cooperation with Adriatica Lines for the summer season.
2014 F/B Ierapetra L. deployed in the international line Bari - Durrës in Charter from ANEK Italia for year-round service. A major engine-room fire on 29 November 2014 when underway with crew only aboard caused substantial damage to the ship which returned to Brindisi Italy. No injuries or fatalities occurred. The vessel is currently out of operation.[12]
2015 ANEK operates the Sophocles V as Kydon on the Piraeus-Chania. The Olympic Champion returns to the Adriatic, and the El. Venizelos operates in the Northern Aegean in order to transport Syrian refugees arriving in Chios and Lesvos.
Old Kydon II, large rebuilt ferry, with hull build in Stocznia im, Komuny Paryskiej, Gdynia Poland, completed in 1992 at Perama, Piraeus, Greece for Piraeus - Crete routes similar to Stena Line's Stena Vision and Stena Spirit as well as the unfinished Regent Sky, named after Chanian Politician and former Prime Minister of Greece, Eleftherios Venizelos.[15]
Old Kriti IV and Olympic Spirit, ferry build at Bruce Shipyard, Landskrona and equipped at Fosen Mekaniske Verksted, Rissa, Norway for Patras - Igoumenitsa - Ancona line[19]
NEL Lines 16.5% (shares sold 2005 to Edgewater Holdings)[9]
DANE Sea Lines 41.87% (stop operations in August 2004 after financial difficulties)[24]
RETHYMNIAKI (took over and finally merged into ANEK Lines in 1999)[7]
ANEN 19.36%[citation needed]
Accidents and incidents
On 28 August 2018, at 23:45 (UTC+03:00), it was reported that El. Venizelos, one of ANEK's fleet, has caught on fire right after leaving from Piraeus' port for Chania, boarding 875 passengers and 140 crew members. The ferry managed to get back to Piraeus with no injuries.[25]
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