The Italian shipping companies Ignazio Messina and Tarros announced a collaboration set to commence in middle June 2024. This partnership will enhance container transport along the route connecting Italy with Libya and Egypt, utilizing two lo-lo container ships. This joint venture marks a renewal of a service previously in place, evidencing the longstanding cooperation between these two notable Italian carriers under a Vessels Sharing Agreement. The service will link three Italian ports - Salerno, La Spezia, and Genoa - with three Libyan ports and one in Egypt, scaling up the regional maritime connectivity.
Each vessel boasts a capacity of approximately 1,200 TEU, ensuring substantial freight capacity. The service is scheduled to operate biweekly, following a rotation from Salerno to Genoa, then on to Tripoli, Misurata, Alexandria, Benghazi, and back to Salerno. Tarros has also noted that the ports of Malta and Augusta will be included as private calls. With the initiation of this route, Messina will begin to approach the port of Alexandria on the north-bound leg with ships from their Middle-East service, creating a direct link for goods originating from regions such as India, Pakistan, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia.
In a statement, Ignazio Messina highlighted the strategic significance of the new maritime line, both geopolitically and commercially. "This service not only reopens the Libyan market from Southern Europe and beyond the Suez areas but also reactivates the north-bound connection between Egypt and Italy. It will further develop traffic between Alexandria and Benghazi and, through the hubs in Alexandria and Genoa, connect Libya and Egypt with all other markets served by Ignazio Messina," said the company.
Danilo Ricci, General Manager of Tarros, expressed enthusiasm about the venture, "We are pleased to offer the Italian industry an even more efficient logistic corridor together with the Messina Line, with which we share a history of fruitful collaboration."
