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Tag: Grimaldi | Page 4 | Ferry Shipping News

Jun 18
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FERRY SHIPPING

By | 2020 Newsletter week 25 | No Comments

Grimaldi Doubled Ro-Ro Capacity With A Second Ship On The Livorno – Cagliari Service

On June 15, Grimaldi Group doubled the cargo capacity of its Livorno – Cagliari maritime link.

In a statement to its freight customers Grimaldi made public that a second vessel (EUROCARGO VALENCIA – 170 trailers) will be active on the route together with the EUROCARGO ISTANBUL already deployed on the same route.

Frequency of the regular services thus became daily and competition with Grendi Trasporti Marittimi operating the similar Marina di Carrara – Cagliari route is expected to increase.

After a temporary stop due to Covid-19, Grendi also recently announced to have restored the new line started last February and linking Porto Torres (in north of Sardinia) with Italy mainland (Marina di Carrara).

Jun 11
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Grimaldi Formally Opposed State Aid To Ferry Companies In Italy And Finland

By | 2020 Newsletter week 24 | No Comments

Emanuele Grimaldi, CEO of Grimaldi Group, exclusively announced to Ferry Shipping News that his company has formally opposed the financial measures decided in Italy and in Finland to support some ferry competitors.

“We have formally contested, both on the local market and in Europe, those measures aimed at giving financial support specifically to some companies and which is selective, discriminatory and capable of distorting competition” Grimaldi said.

Legal actions have been promoted and addressed to Rome and Bruxelles for the EUR 72 million public subsidies extended by the Italian government to Compagnia Italiana di Navigazione (part of Onorato Armatori and operating Tirrenia’s fleet and routes) until 18 July 2021.

A similar action was taken in Finland against the National Emergency Supply Agency which “has already granted financial support to four out of seven commercial operators securing the main maritime bridges for rubber-tired vehicles. Finnlines has also filed an application under this same emergency financial support programme but up to know we did not receive any public aid”. For this reason, Grimaldi sent a letter to the European Union Directorate-General for Competition accusing Finland’s government of providing selective assistance to five ferry operators that compete with Finnlines.

In an interview published in the Wall Street Journal, the Italian owner further added: “Those who are not strong enough to survive should be incorporated by those who are strong. That’s the way it should work, but with the pandemic, it’s not. I’ve never seen so much state interference in shipping,” Grimaldi concluded.

Jun 04
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Passenger Transport Between Sardinia And Italy Reopens – Excluded Ferry Companies Protest

By | 2020 Newsletter week 23 | No Comments

Italy’s transport minister announced on June 2nd that passenger transport to and from Sardinia island could re-open.

In a first phase only the ferry company operating the territorial continuity (i.e. Tirrenia – Compagnia Italiana di Navigazione) is allowed to start.

For all the other players operating on the same routes (Corsica Sardinia ferries, Grimaldi, Grandi Navi Veloci and Moby) the restart-date is June 13th.

The same rule applied for air transportation. Only public airline firm Alitalia was allowed to start.

This decision has been fiercely opposed by the shipowners and logistics associations Confitarma and Federlogistica supporting respectively Grimaldi and Grandi Navi Veloci’s interests. They ask the minister to rethink the act, also recalling antitrust issues as the measure would distort competition among ferry operators.

Oct 10
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Grimaldi Group Intends To Charter La Meridionale’s Ropax GIROLATA

By | 2019 Newsletter week 41 | No Comments

Unconfirmed information claims that Grimaldi Lines intends to charter the ropax GIROLATA of the French company La Méridionale. The former Minoan Line’s ARETOUSA, has left the Marseilles – Corsica route after the French company was not chosen to operate the public service.

She might return to the Adriatic Sea in order to replace the Grimaldi Group’s ships that will have exhaust gas cleaning systems units installed.

The charter period is likely to begin in November, until spring 2020. To be confirmed.

Oct 10
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FERRY PORTS

By | 2019 Newsletter week 41 | No Comments

Grimaldi, GNV And Tirrenia Competing For The New Ropax Terminal In Civitavecchia

The president of the Civitavecchia port authority, Francesco Maria di Majo, recently confirmed that a public tender is expected to be launched soon, in order to put on the market the new Darsena Traghetti terminal. Three industry players expressed their interest.

Ferry Shipping News understood from sources familiar with the matter that the three companies soon to bid for the new infrastructure are Grimaldi Group, MSC-controlled Grandi Navi Veloci, and Tirrenia, part of Moby group.

The Darsena Traghetti is a new terminal, currently still under construction. Once completed, the terminal will offer six 240m berths for ropax vessels.

The preferred bidder, according to what di Majo explained, will have to maximise not only passengers but also roro and automotive traffic in the port.

Jul 04
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FERRY SHIPPING

By | 2019 Newsletter week 27 | No Comments

Grimaldi’s New Series Of ‘Super Star’ Ro-Pax Ferries Likely To Be Ordered After Summer

Emanuele Grimaldi, CEO of the Naples-based Grimaldi Group, said that the order for the first units of the new series of ‘Super Star’ ferries are likely to be inked in September. He said that during a press conference held in Civitavecchia aboard the renovated CRUISE ROMA.

Mr Grimaldi also stated that among the interested shipyards, there is also Fincantieri.

Grimaldi firstly revealed this new project of ferries for Finnlines last October at the Euromed Convention held in Athens, specifying that “they will be the evolution of the Star Class units built by Fincantieri in Italy, and as for the capacity they have 300 cabins and roughly 5,000 lane metres capacity”.

May 30
1

VIDEO

By | 2019 Newsletter week 22 | No Comments

LIVEX 2019

On 25 May, Dutch Coast Guard organised a rescue exercise on P&O Ferries’ PRIDE OF HULL.

Watch a short movie (Dutch spoken)

Grimaldi Group Officially Presented The ‘Extended’ CRUISE ROMA

Grimaldi Group officially presented the renovated and lengthened ferry CRUISE ROMA in the port of Barcelona. She re-entered service on the Civitavecchia – Porto Torres – Barcelona route after completing a lengthening work at the Fincantieri shipyard in Palermo.

A new 29m section including 600 additional freight lane meters, together with 80 sleeping accommodations in new passenger cabins and two new public spaces was inserted at the centre of the 2007-built vessel.

A message saying “Zero emission in port” is now visible on both the sides of the vessel since the CRUISE ROMA was also fitted with a scrubber system, as well as a system to power the ship during the turnaround time in ports based on mega-lithium batteries.

The same works are to be done also for the sister ship CRUISE BARCELONA, which is currently dry docked at Fincantieri Palermo’s site.

Oct 11
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Grimaldi Announces Project Starting For Finnlines’ New Super Star Ferry Class

By | 2018 Newsletter week 41 | No Comments

Following the new orders for Finnlines signed with the Chinese shipbuilder Jinling earlier this year (three ice-class ro-ro vessels), Grimaldi Group of Italy is launching a new project for a series of ‘Super Star’ ro-pax ferries.

“They will be the evolution of the Star Class units built by Fincantieri in Italy and as for the capacity they have 300 cabins and roughly 5,000 lane metres capacity” Emanuele Grimaldi told at the annual EuroMed Convention, held in Athens.

“We would be very pleased to build them in Europe since there are several shipyards like Visentini and Fincantieri in Italy and also some others in Germany skilled for that” Grimaldi added, specifying that they are obviously looking “for a good price”.

The project phase for the Super Star class will take at least one year and afterwards the Italian ferry group will start negotiating with the shipyards.

Oct 11
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Five Million Passengers: Grimaldi Group’s Objective For 2019

By | 2018 Newsletter week 41 | No Comments

After closing 2017 with 3 million passengers and 2018 expected to close at 4 million, Grimaldi Group of Italy is now watching at the 5 million as the new annual threshold to reach before the end of 2019.

The new ambitious target was revealed by Emanuele Grimaldi at the Euromed Convention held in Athens, Greece, where he also revealed that today the passenger business accounts just for 10% on the total turnover of € 3 billion.

Talking about the local market he said that Grimaldi Group’s future plans are to offer more services to Greek islands: “New route to Chania, new services to Cyclades Islands, new services to Corfù from Southern, Central and Northern Italy, and more connections also to Greece mainland”.

But Emanuele Grimaldi emphasized also more connection to Greek mainland talking about “increased cargo and passengers capacity from/to Venice and Brindisi and more global connections via Brindisi and via Euromed/deep-sea connections”.

Oct 11
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Minoan Results: A 10-Year-Long Race Won By Grimaldi + More Consolidation In The Ferry Market

By | 2018 Newsletter week 41 | No Comments

At the traditional EuroMed Convention held in Athens this year, Grimaldi Group’s ceo Emanuele Grimaldi mentioned Minoan’s financial results speaking of a “10 year long race” recalling that the Greek subsidiary until 2010 had €500 million debts and €35.9 million operating losses per year, while in 2017/2018 is debt free and obtained “the best results in Greece among the ferry operators”.

Given this scenario, Grimaldi underlined again that “consolidation is a must for the ferry market” and that the group he heads is watching “at 20 potential firms to be taken over in the future”.

He also added that three of Minoan’s ferries will be equipped with scrubbers before summer 2019.