Greece Puts $12.8 Billion Investments at Risk as Projects Stall
- Clouds gather over Hellinikon as Lamda alleges contract breach
- Eldorado Gold moves Skouries project into care and maintenance
Greece’s archaeological council ruled in October that construction was possible on the site of the old Athens airport Hellinikon, subject to additional conditions.
Photographer: NurPhoto via Getty Images
Two of Greece’s biggest projects -- together valued at about 11 billion euros ($12.8 billion) -- have stalled on bureaucratic and legal wranglings, raising questions about the country’s ability to draw investments it desperately needs for an economic recovery.
Lamda Development, which is managing the Hellinikon site, the biggest real estate investment in country, said on Friday that Greece’s efforts to go back on terms already agreed to “violates the necessary trust between the parties.” That statement came a day after Canadian mining company Eldorado Gold Corp. announced that it’s taking legal action against Greece for its failure to issue the company permits needed for its Skouries project.