At a recent conference, Grimaldi Group’s CEO Emanuele Grimaldi (pictured) confirmed that by the end of 2024 an order will probably be placed with a Chinese shipyard for nine new ropaxes.
This move aligns with the company’s strategy to modernise its fleet and support its sustainability goals by enhancing efficiency and reducing emissions, he said.
At the XXVI Euromed Convention held in Athens, Greece, Grimaldi specified that four ships will be for Grimaldi Euromed and two for Minoan Lines.
They will be methanol ready, with 3,300 lane metres and a capacity for 2,500 pax and 300 cars. There will be 300 cabins fitted.
The remaining three will be for Finnlines and also biofuels/methanol ready, with 5,400 lane metres of garage space, a capacity for 1,000 pax, and also fitted with 300 cabins.
As for their future deployments, he said that the newbuildings for Finnlines will be introduced on the Travemünde/Helsinki route, while the Minoan ships are expected to operate on the Piraeus/Heraklion link, the Euromed ropaxes are likely to cover the Brindisi (or Ancona)/Igoumenitsa route in the Adriatic, and the Livorno/Palermo or Naples/Palermo routes in the Tyrrhenian Sea.
It is possible that two of these new ships will also serve routes to and from the Sardinia region, he revealed.
The first ropax is expected to be delivered in 2027.
