Souda naval base capacity to expand
Deputy Defense Minister Yiannis Kefaloyiannis signed the tender on Thursday for the first project aimed at expanding Greece’s naval facilities, starting with the upgrade of the Naval Station at Souda Bay. The first project involves building a new pier to accommodate more ships. The total budget for the maintenance, modernization and expansion of Crete’s naval station is €188 million.
The main aim is to transform the Crete Naval Base in Souda – which is separate from the US naval facilities on the other side of the bay in Marathi – into a second permanent large naval base of the Hellenic Navy alongside Salamina, close to Athens. The projects include the extension of existing piers and the creation of new berths, as well as the construction of living quarters to accommodate the crews of ships docked at the Crete Naval Base. The work will include the creation of repair facilities, which currently exist only in Salamina.
One of the primary goals of the upgrade is to enable the navy’s units to reach the Eastern Mediterranean more quickly and to relieve pressure on the Salamina base, which is home to the majority of the fleet.
The new infrastructure will enhance naval capabilities as well. In addition to the ships, it will have the ability to station and service combat units of allied countries. Given that the Eastern Mediterranean is at the crossroads of several crises, with the Middle East being only the latest of them, it is clear that the geopolitical value of Crete, and therefore the military facilities it can host, is increasing geometrically.
There is concrete deadline as yet, but the overall objective is to have naval troops of all stripes permanently stationed in Souda by 2030. To put it briefly, the goal is for Souda to be able to hold submarines, frigates, missile boats and smaller surface ships.
