Grimaldi Lines ‘Eurocargo Bari‘ arrived in the Port of Cork this week to start its new direct RoRo freight service operating between Cork and Antwerp twice a week, departing Cork on Mondays and Thursdays.
The Grimaldi Group has been calling to Cork on a regular basis for almost 25 years for the transport of rolling freight and containers. The Naples-based Group operates a fleet of over 130 Ro-Ro, Con-Ro, Ro-Pax and cruise ferry vessels supported by investments in people, ports, terminals, and intermodal equipment worldwide and this new Irish service will link into the network at Antwerp.
Port of Cork said: ‘The decision by the Grimaldi Group to offer a direct Cork-Antwerp-Cork freight service is very welcome and will greatly support our efforts to keep supply chains moving during the current Covid-19 pandemic. The new service will also further strengthen Cork’s direct links with the heart of Europe, capitalising on the market’s growing use of the unaccompanied freight model, as shippers seek direct links to market rather than use the UK Land bridge.’
RoRo sailings between Ireland and the continent are picking up since Brexit. CLdN, the European freight specialist, has also chartered two additional RoRo vessels to increase sailings between the Continent and Dublin, increasing from eight to ten in each direction, on a weekly basis.
