News / Grimaldi holds faith with ConRo trades, despite wide switch to cellular tonnage

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Despite seeing carriers move away from the container ro-ro (ConRo) trade, opting for pure container vessels, one operator continues to see potential in the market.  

According to Alphaliner’s recent report, just six deepsea ConRo ships have entered service since 2023, all built for Grimaldi Group. In comparison, between 2023 and the first half of this year, 942 newbuild box ships entered the liner fleet. 

“While numerous other companies have quit the sector over the years, typically opting for pure containerships, Grimaldi is the only industry player that still believes in the concept of transporting containers, cars, trucks and wheeled project cargo on a single purpose-built ship,” reported Alphaliner.  

The six new ships were designed for services to West and Central Africa, built by Hyundai Mipo Dockyard. The first, Great Antwerp, entered service in April 2023 between Northern Europe and West Africa. It has 4,700 lane metres of space for 2,500 cars and 2,157 teu. 

The group has 37 deepsea ConRo vessels and, while most are deployed between Europe and Africa, five are deployed on he North Atlantic trades, two between China and Nigeria, and four between Europe and the east coast of South America. 

However, Alphaliner pointed out that Grimaldi had no further ConRos on order and was, instead, focused on the renewal and expansion of its shortsea ro-ro and ro-pax fleets. 

Noteable recent exits from the ConRo trade include Italy’s Linea Messina, which used to be the global number-two in the deepsea ConRo market.

“Struggling financially, Messina sold its eight ConRos in 2022 and 2023, switching to cellular ships,” explained Alphaliner.  “The Genoa-based company, in which MSC is a major stakeholder, now owns seven cellular containerships, from 4,380 to 6,330 teu.

“Messina today uses flat-rack containers to carry ro-ro cargo, as well as out-of-gauge cargo on deck,” it added.  

Other former ConRo players include Delmas, bought by CMA CGM in 2005 and which shut down ConRo operations in 2013, OT Africa Line and NileDutch. Saudi shipping company Bahri still operates five deepsea ConRos, built in 2013 and 2014.  

Alphaliner noted that West Africa had typically “been a playground” for deepsea ConRos, since this ship type only required basic port infrastructure. 

However, the analyst added, with new and improved port facilities in Africa, the number of ConRo ships and operators had “steadily declined”.  

“Most cargo has shifted to full container services that deploy cellular ships. Ports such as Tema, Lomé, Abidjan, Kribi, and others are now equipped to welcome the world’s largest containerships” it explained.  

Interestingly, Alphaliner found that US domestic services also remained populated by ConRo ships, operated by “the four so-called Jones Act carriers”, Matson, Pasha, Crowley, and Tote.  

The Jones Act requires that goods shipped between US ports be transported on ships built, owned, and operated by US citizens or permanent residents. The four carriers operate a fleet of nine ConRo and ro-ro vessels

“The deployment of such vessels makes sense where the contiguous United States must be connected to the two states that are not part of the ‘lower 48’ – Hawaii and Alaska – as well as to US territories overseas, such as Puerto Rico,” explained Alphaliner. 

“Subsequently, there are only three trade corridors where Jones Act ships make economic sense: USWC to Hawaii; USWC to Alaska; and USEC to Puerto Rico.”