Born in
Athens, was the Greek
Minister for Transport and Communications from April 13, 2000, to March 10, 2004. Graduating from the
German School of Athens, Christos Verelis studied
chemistry at the
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and later on completed his
Ph.D. in the chemistry of natural products in
Heidelberg University, Germany. Christos Verelis speaks the languages
English,
German and
French. In the general elections of 1996 and 2000, he was elected
MP (
PASOK) for
Aetolia-Acarnania. From 1996 to 13 April 2000, Verelis was
Deputy Minister for the Environment, Town Planning and Public Works. Besides that, he was
managing director of the Hellenic Oil Refinery in
Aspropyrgos, and president of the ASPROFOS company (1986–1989). Worked in the private sector (1989–1993). President of the Public Petroleum Corporation (1993–1996); during his term, he recommended the merger of the group into a single company and a share issue. Chairman and managing director of the Public Gas Corporation (1993–1996). Chairman of the Greek Chemists’ Union (1985–1993). Member of the PASOK Central Committee since 1996. President of the Greek Community in
Heidelberg, and member of the Presidium of the Greek Communities in Germany. He had worked for large chemical companies in Germany and then in Greece until 1996. Christos Verelis is also member of the Standing Committee on Economic Affairs. He is the father of a son and three daughters. In May 2009, he resigned from the
Greek Parliament out of political sensitivity over scandal allegations. In May 2011, Part of his research was published in 1977 in the journal
Planta Medica under the title "Die n-Alkane von Echinacea angustifolia" (co-authored with H. Becker). This study is considered one of the earliest systematic European investigations into the composition of
Echinacea and contributed to expanding scientific and pharmacological knowledge of the plant in Europe. ==References==