A new roll-on roll-off freight service to Livorno is to start being operated by Grimaldi on Saturday in the latest expansion since the Italian company took over from Sea Malta five years ago.

The route will be operated by two vessels, which the company also inaugurated this morning. The ships, one which was christened Eurocargo Malta, have a length of 200 metres and can carry around 280 trailers each.

The new service will operate twice weekly with departures from Malta on Monday and Saturday and from Livorno on Monday and Thursday.

Grimaldi Group commercial manager Guido Grimaldi said the service will be integrated into the regular service currently operated between Malta, Catania and Genoa.

Mr Grimaldi said the new route was a sign of the company’s commitment to strengthen its operations in Malta.

Transport Minister Austin Gatt said that Grimaldi’s success five years after the Sea Malta saga showed the government’s decision had been the right one.

Trade links between Malta and mainland Europe had been strengthened and Grimaldi had run a profitable operation which had benefitted industry. This could also be seen through its forthcoming expansion project.

The minister said that the number of trailers carried between Malta and Italy since Grimaldi embarked on operations from Malta increased from around 10,000 in 2005 to some 23,000 today.

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