Chapter 307: Anti-Impact Preparation (Part 2)

Thinking of this, Venizelos sighed and said with a sense of luck: "Maybe things won't go in the worst direction."

Venizelos didn't want a war that would affect the whole of Europe to happen at this time. Read

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Greece's economic situation is just right. As long as Greece digests the territory of Macedonia, its national strength will be further enhanced.

Now Greece only needs time.

Moreover, in the short period of time from 1912 to 1913, Greece has participated in two wars in a row. Now it is only the middle of 1914. Will it have to endure the baptism of war again?

"Let's do this. Due to the potential risk of war, we will hold a meeting immediately and invite the heads of major companies in Greece to participate in the meeting, so that they can prepare and minimize the impact on the Greek economy," Venizelos said.

In Venizelos' view, Greece does not have the ability to influence the direction of the entire European political situation. It can only prepare as much as possible to resist the impact of war.

European countries are all small and medium-sized countries (except Russia). They are not big in land and resources. They cannot be self-sufficient and need to exchange what they have. The trade between countries is extremely close.

As a country with an incomplete industrial chain, Greece's economy is highly dependent on foreign countries. Once Europe falls into war, even if Greece is not involved, it will be disastrous for the Greek economy alone.

The next day, in the large conference room of the Palace of Constitution Square, in addition to Greek government officials, representatives of major Greek companies gathered together.

Andros Machinery, Philip Pharmaceuticals, Greek Steel Company, Railway Company, Royal Petroleum Company, Power Company, Royal Bank, Alpha Bank, National Bank, three major commercial banks, Wine Association, Textile Association, Agricultural Cooperative Association and other large Greek companies or representatives of organizations, all accepted the invitation to attend the meeting after receiving the invitation from the Greek government.

"The reason for inviting everyone to attend the meeting may be that everyone has guessed that due to the impact of the Sarajevo incident, war may break out in Europe..." said Venizelos, who presided over the meeting.

Before Venizelos finished speaking, it was like a bomb exploded in the conference room.

"Another war? Isn't this too frequent? Didn't the war just end last year?"

"The domestic development momentum is good now, why do we have to fight now?"

The discussion filled the entire conference room.

"Okay, everyone keep quiet," Constantine, who was sitting opposite Venizelos, maintained order.

"It's not that the Greeks want to fight, but that there may be a war in Europe that will sweep almost all countries. We need to prepare in advance to reduce possible losses."

After that, Constantine told everyone in detail about the current political and diplomatic situation in Europe.

Hearing that Greece was not the first country to bear the brunt, the attitudes of the representatives in the conference room were obviously different.

Omiris, the head of the railway company, heard that Britain might also participate in the war, and said: "Currently, almost all the coal used in Greece comes from Britain. Once Britain joins the war, coal production in Britain may stop, and the coal supply in Greece will be interrupted."

The railway company, in which the Greek government holds a stake, has long been the largest user of imported coal in Greece, except for steel companies.

Greece only has lignite, which has low calorific value and high dust, and cannot be used as steam engine fuel for locomotives.

If the coal supply is lost, the Greek railway will face the risk of paralysis.

After the railway network connecting all parts of Greece was built, the railway became the main means of transportation in Greece. If the railway stopped operating, it would seriously affect the domestic economy of Greece.

For a long time, British coal has firmly occupied the international coal market. With the rise of Germany, coal in the Ruhr area has started a fierce competition with British coal.

However, due to its geographical location, Greece has been importing British coal for a long time because the cost of importing German coal is too high.

Venizelos hurriedly asked with concern: "How much British coal did your company consume last year?"

"Last year, our company used 850,000 tons of British coal. Under normal circumstances, this year should be higher. In order to reduce the risk, should we stockpile a batch of coal in advance?" Omiris asked.

"Your railway company and steel company should stockpile coal immediately, do your best, stockpile as much as you can, and you must seize the time," Constantine ordered decisively.

The railway company is a company in which the Greek government has a stake, and the steel company has been strongly supported by the royal family. They are different from ordinary private enterprises, and Constantine can directly intervene in their operations.

Steel mills are also vital factories. Once the lack of coal affects the production of steel mills, the adverse impact on the Greek economy will not be much less than the suspension of railway operations.

Volgaris, the head of the Wine Association, was not panicked when he heard the news of the war, but was somewhat happy: "For Greece, the outbreak of war in Europe is not all bad. At least our wine will not have to worry about sales. Once the war starts, the prices of industrial raw materials such as coal, wood, and ore, and food will rise."

"Due to the high production and the competition with French and Italian wines, Greek wines have been unsalable in previous years. In the past two years, the situation has been better because the army has purchased a large amount of wine."

Soldiers in war will have a sharp increase in demand for tobacco and alcohol. During the two Balkan Wars, in order to boost morale, the Greek Logistics Department purchased a large amount of wine in Greece.

"You can notify grape farmers this year to focus on producing wine and stop drying raisins," Constantine said to Volgaris.

Greece has a large area suitable for growing grapes, and barren hills and gravel are particularly suitable for growing wine grapes.

In recent years, with the development of the economy in Greece, the per capita consumption of wine has gradually increased. In the past two years, the army has vigorously purchased wine in Greece, which has greatly stimulated farmers' enthusiasm for growing grapes.

The originally barren hills and slopes, which had no development value at all, are now widely planted with grapevines. There are vineyards distributed all over the country, resulting in a rapid increase in wine production in Greece. Last year, Greek wine production reached 12 million liters.

However, Greece's domestic wine consumption is only 7 million liters, and Greece's domestic wine production is seriously oversupplied.

Since the price of wine in Greece is low, most wines only cost 2 drachmas per bottle, and the export market is not large, in order to reduce the output of wine, farmers will dry some grapes into raisins.

"Your Highness, the output of wine in Greece is seriously oversupplied. If all grapes are made into wine, the total output may reach 20 million liters," Volgaris hesitated.

"In this way, your wine association calls on the people in the country to actively make wine, and soon the military logistics department will purchase another batch of wine."

Constantine also noticed at this time that the outbreak of the European war was not all bad for Greece. At least the agricultural products planted on the newly reclaimed land in Macedonia would be very popular.